Auburn wraps up AMBUSH with sellouts in Nashville, LaGrange

Auburn wraps up AMBUSH with sellouts in Nashville, LaGrangeAuburn wraps up AMBUSH with sellouts in Nashville, LaGrange
Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers

LaGRANGE, Ga. – With sold-out events in consecutive nights in Nashville, Tennessee, and LaGrange, Georgia, Auburn coaches wrapped up the AMBUSH tour Wednesday, thanking fans who travel near and far to support the Tigers home and away.

"It's so important," said men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl, who raced back to the Plains after Wednesday's event to meet with a prospective student-athlete. "It's been one of the great keys to our success, is the Auburn family, the way our fans travel."

The Auburn Alumni Association's 2023 AMBUSH tour kicked off in Atlanta and Huntsville in late April.

"It gives us a chance to thank them for their support," Pearl said, recapping his message to fans. "I'm here to thank you for supporting us and giving us a great home-court advantage at Neville Arena and Jordan-Hare and following us on the road."

On Wednesday's final stop, Voice of the Auburn Tigers Andy Burcham interviewed Pearl, athletic director John Cohen, football coach Hugh Freeze and gymnastics coach Jeff Graba in front of 350 attendees. The previous night, volleyball coach Brent Crouch and swimming and diving coach Ryan Wochomurka joined the panel before 300 Auburn fans in Nashville. 



All of the coaches continue to navigate the transfer portal, a fairly recent NCAA development that has transformed a recruiting process that used to primarily encompass high school student-athletes. 

"Here's my question: do they improve our roster?" Freeze said regarding his criteria for recruiting college players with differing experience levels. "I know there's a lot of excitement right now with what we've done in recruiting, and I'm thrilled with that.

"I'm excited, but I think it's too early to tell how much have we closed the gap on the ones we have to close the gap on. The one thing I feel confident in saying is that we've improved our roster. How much I don't know until we play some games."

For Cohen, the AMBUSH event capped an action-packed day that included watching Auburn's men's golf team win the NCAA regional it hosted at Auburn University Club, followed immediately by a reverse Tiger Walk for the softball team on its way to Clemson for an NCAA regional. 

"When you have Maddie Penta, the reigning SEC pitcher of the year, on the mound you always have an opportunity to win," Cohen said. "It's fun to watch these kids compete and represent Auburn in the right way."

A former SEC head baseball coach at Mississippi State and Kentucky, Cohen shared with reporters how Auburn head coach Butch Thompson and pitching Daron Schoenrock have developed pitchers who have helped the Tigers win four consecutive SEC series. 

"They keep giving them opportunities and you have seen great results from that," Cohen said. "That's coaching, that's encouragement, that's leadership. I'm not taking anything away from the student-athletes, they've done a great job as well. I think Auburn's one through nine is as solid as anybody's."

While Auburn coaches visited supporters in three states during the 2023 AMBUSH tour, they invited fans to continue coming back to Auburn as often as possible, strengthening the bond that Cohen has referenced throughout his first six months leading the athletic department.

Auburn being Auburn. 

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer