To say the Auburn football program has fallen on hard times would be generous. The Tigers haven’t had a winning season since 2020 and have become an afterthought in the SEC.
What 2026 brings, though, is hope. That hope comes in the form of 1st-year head coach Alex Golesh and with a new batch of recruits, which now includes a commitment from Class of 2027 quarterback Gary Chatman Jr.
Chatman, 6-foot and 190 pounds, is already pretty well known thanks to viral videos of his workouts that showed off what seems like an SEC-ready arm.
“New Auburn commit QB Gary Chatman has gone viral for having a ‘cannon’ of an arm,” NFL influencer Dov Kleiman wrote on their official X account. “A picture-perfect spiral.”
Chatman announced his commitment to Auburn on May 9. He’ll play his senior season for Brookwood High School in Snellville, Georgia, this fall. He threw for 1,494 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions in 10 games, along with 418 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns while averaging 11.9 yards per carry in his 1st year as a starter in 2025.
“Gods timing!” Chatman wrote on his X account when he announced his commitment. “‘I’m home.”
What Tigers Are Getting in Gary Chatman Jr.
It’s not hard to see why Chatman has churned up so much buzz since his commitment — the zip on his passes seems otherworldly.
“Auburn commit quarterback Gary Chatman has one of the most special arms you will see,” ML Football wrote on its official X account. “Chatman has elite spin on his ball, and his accuracy is otherworldly for a high school kid. All the potential to be the next great quarterback.”
Chatman was previously committed to Wake Forest before flipping to Auburn. He also has offers from Iowa State, West Virginia, and Liberty, among others.
“The 6-foot-1, 200-pound junior committed Saturday to the Auburn University football program, reversing course after an initial pledge to Wake Forest,” The Gwinnett Daily Post’s Will Hammock wrote on May 9. “Chatman is a dual-threat quarterback who has run as fast as 4.49 seconds in the 40-yard dash. Despite an early-season broken collarbone that forced him to miss games and limited his running production, Chatman threw for 1,494 yards and 12 touchdowns, and rushed for 418 yards and five TDs last season for the Broncos’ state playoff team.”
High Praise for ’27 QB From Recruiting Guru
Chatman received high praise from 247Sports Director of Scouting Andrew Ivins the day before his commitment.
“Scrappy dual-threat talent that flashes as a down-field passer,” Ivins wrote on May 8. ” … avoids sacks with impressive pocket awareness and can make accurate off-balance tosses. Beats defenders to the edge on RPO calls and has proven to be a tough tackle in tight quarters. Must get more consistent with his ball placement and improving timing, but has a chance to do damage on Saturdays in a power-spread attack.”
The hope now is that Auburn can at least get on the other side of .500 in 2026 and have some momentum when Chatman eventually shows up on campus.
Golesh, 41 years old, has done little to this point in his career to prove he’s going to be capable of turning things around. In 3 seasons as South Florida’s head coach, he closed things out with his best season in 2025 by going 9-3, but never finished above 4th place in the American Conference.
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