Pike Road's Blocton picks Auburn over Texas for next stop

PIke Road’s Malik Blocton dons an Auburn hat signifying his commitment to the Tigers after the 2023 football season. (Tim Gayle)

By TIM GAYLE

PIKE ROAD -- Malik Blocton sat at a table with four baseball caps symbolizing the college choice of the Pike Road defensive lineman, but three of them were just props. 

He initially reached over and grabbed a Texas cap and studied it for a second, but he never had any intention of putting it on. 

Moments later, the worst-kept secret was over as Blocton put on an Auburn hat as his brother, Auburn senior defensive lineman Marcus Harris, looked on.

Blocton thanked his mother, his teachers and his teammates before thanking his brother, who was sitting to his left.

“About five years ago, he was sitting where I was sitting,” Blocton said. “I saw him commit somewhere and it made me think that I could do it to.”

Harris was a standout at Park Crossing at the time and signed with Kansas before transferring in 2021 to Auburn, where he is about to begin his senior season. 

“I feel like I’m happier than he is,” Harris said. “I know what a great school Auburn is and what Auburn has to offer. With coaches like Coach (Hugh) Freeze and Coach (Jeremy) Garrett and the DC (defensive coordinator Ron Roberts), they are great guys to be around and great guys to help him go from being a little boy to a grown man, to help him grow through college and be a young adult when he comes out.”

“I came to the (Pike Road) spring game and he was dominating. I’m proud of him. I can’t wait to see what he does at the next level.”  

Harris had offers from 40 different programs, including every Southeastern Conference school, but there was little doubt where he would attend college. For the record, the hats in front of him on the table represented Troy, Texas, Auburn and Alabama, but Blocton said the decision came down to Auburn and Texas. 

“It was really between Auburn and Texas, to be honest,” he said. “Texas is 12 hours away and Auburn is right up the road. Texas is losing four guys and Auburn is losing five guys so I feel like I have a chance to play more (in my first year) at Auburn. And my family can come support me.

“It feels like a monkey off my back. It really has started to get stressful on me, to be honest.” 

The 6-foot-3, 270-pound Blocton, the top-rated Rivals recruit in the River Region, said Auburn won out because the Tigers always made him a priority, whether it was Bryan Harsin, Carnell Williams or Freeze recruiting him. It also helped that Freeze and his staff at Liberty, which included Auburn defensive line coach Jeremy Garrett, had been recruiting him as well. 

“It didn’t matter who the coaching staff was at Auburn, no matter who the D-line coach was, they’ve always been consistent with me,” Blocton said. “When coach Garrett got there, me and coach Garrett already had a good relationship because he offered me when he was at Liberty. So me and him had that connection. It just felt like the right fit for me.” 

Blocton said the fact his brother was a starter on the defensive line at Auburn wasn’t a factor in his choice.

“It wasn’t really an influence,” he said. “He wasn’t telling me to go to Auburn, he just told me to go where I felt I could play early, where I feel like I fit best.”

Still, it was evident early in the recruiting process that his brother’s choice would become his choice.

“I learned most everything I know about football from him,” Blocton said. “Any time he learns something new about the game, he’ll come home and tell me. I’ve learned from all his mistakes, so I don’t have to make the same mistakes. That’s why he went to Kansas out of high school and I’m going to Auburn out of high school.”

Blocton is expected to graduate from Pike Road in December and enroll early at Auburn so he can participate in spring drills for the Tigers. 

“He can play pretty much any position up front for us,” first-year Pike Road coach Granger Shook said, “so we are going to try and move him around a little bit and keep offenses guessing. He’s an impact player, for sure. He’s going to be an impact player for Auburn, there’s no doubt about it.”