From Auburn 247 site:
No high school relationships
high school coaches have been very disappointed by the lack of communication from Bryan Harsin since he arrived at Auburn. One called it the worst situation he’s ever seen at a program in the state.
Not on the road
The dead period ended and schools were able to go back on the road on January 14 of this year. The first week Bryan Harsin visited a few schools in the Birmingham area. That’s it. That’s the total amount of schools he visited the first week of the open period when head coaches were allowed on the road. During that same stretch Kirby Smart went to 27 schools and Nick Saban visited schools in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Texas and California.
Harsin was on the road the final last week and did a good job of seeing schools in Alabama and Georgia, but by then the damage was done. In particular that was the case at nearby Central-Phenix City.
Coach Patrick Nix had called to make sure Auburn was going to come by the school, but to no avail. Finally, on the last day, Harsin made the trip over to the school that features a trio of trio prospects in A.J. Harris, Tomarrion Parker and Karmello English. It was the first time an Auburn coach had been in the school during the visit period, a school 30 minutes away from campus.
Auburn went back in the school in the spring, but didn’t see the Red Devils in pads during spring practices. I’m told that was a big deal for the kids and particularly hurt them as they were trying to get back into the mix.
That carried over this fall where Auburn’s coordinators, offensive line coach and tight ends coach didn’t go on the road until the bye week of the schedule, week eight. Those directives came from the top down and wasn’t indicative of the work ethic of the assistants. I’m told Harsin wanted them in Friday night meetings at the hotel instead of on the road recruiting. The staff has used almost all of its recruiting days thanks to a busy bye week, but by then the damage was already done with players making decisions and cutting down lists.
Junior Day fiascos
For the entire month of January, three weekends worth, Auburn had none of the top 15 players in Alabama for the 2023 class on campus. 0-15. That’s an impossible thing to wrap your head around, but it’s exactly what happened.
It’s that lack of understanding and planning that showed up throughout the 20 months or so Harsin was on campus. The weekend before the Tigers decided to have a Junior Day with Auburn basketball playing host to Kentucky early on a Saturday. The staff sent out invitations, but it was already too late. Other schools had been planning weeks and months in advance because of the limited time in January to get kids on campus. Auburn was left with nobody being able to show up.
That meant the 100 tickets reserved for the Junior Day went back to the ticket office. Fortunately they were able to offer them to former Auburn basketball players and families to allow them the opportunity to come to a game.