ARLINGTON, Va. — (247 Sports) Malcolm Johnson Jr. will be an Auburn Tiger.
The 4-star receiver from Arlington (Va.) St. Stephen's & St. Agnes committed to Gus Malzahn’s program on Friday, giving Auburn a huge recruiting win over Alabama, Florida, Georgia and LSU.
But the news doesn’t stop there.
Johnson will be able to play for the Tigers this season. That’s right — this season.
He is reclassifying from 2021 to 2020 and plans to enroll in classes at Auburn next week.
“I feel like Auburn has a nice family feel and I feel like under any circumstances the school will always have my back,” Johnson said. “That was really important to me.”
Because of the COVID-19 situation, high school football in Virginia is off this fall. So instead of waiting to play in the spring, Johnson made the decision to enroll in college early.
“I feel like this is a one-time opportunity,” Johnson said. “Auburn provided me a better opportunity. That was the best choice for me and my family.”
Johnson, who is 6-feet-1, 185 pounds, had been the No. 36 receiver and No. 191 overall recruit nationally in the industry generated 247Sports Composite for 2021. It’s unclear at this time where he would sit in the 2020 rankings.
Last season, Johnson caught 47 passes for 832 yards and 7 touchdowns. He is known for his big-play ability — and his speed. Johnson has a best 100-meters time of 10.38 seconds, making him one of the fastest 2020s in the country.
At Auburn, he plans to also run track.
The Tigers, in their conversations with Johnson, compared him to former Clemson receiver Sammy Watkins, who became a first-round pick. Watkins played under first-year Auburn offensive coordinator Chad Morris in college.
It wasn’t Malzahn or Morris who played the biggest role in Johnson’s recruitment, but receivers coach Kodi Burns.
“I talk to him literally like every day,” Johnson said. “Just about the littlest things. There’s no question about our relationship.”
With Johnson arriving at Auburn early, the Tigers have one of the top receiver classes (if not the top class) in the country for 2020. Of the now five receivers in that haul, four had 4-star rankings.