The era of quarterbacks like Jason Campbell, Brandon Cox, and Dameyune Craig feels like a distant memory, since it’s now rare for a signal-caller to stick with the same program they committed to out of high school and eventually earn the starting job. With the transfer portal playing such a central role in modern college football, coaches can quickly patch the most critical position on the field. More often than not, that means quarterbacks who patiently waited for their turn end up leaving for what they hope will be better opportunities elsewhere.
That pattern has certainly held true at Auburn, which hasn’t seen a high school quarterback recruit develop into a consistent starter since Bo Nix wore the Tigers’ uniform. As AL.com’s Peter Rauterkus pointed out, looking at Auburn’s last five high school QB signees reads like a roll call of players who finished their college careers somewhere else.
Auburn has struggled to find success with high school quarterbacks. The most notable and recent example is Deuce Knight, who left after just one season due to the coaching change to Alex Golesh. Golesh brought in his own transfer, Byrum Brown, who had played for him at USF. Knight is now at Ole Miss, where he’ll likely back up Trinidid Chambliss before eventually taking over the offense.
In his lone start for Auburn last season, Knight showed why he was such a coveted recruit, throwing for 239 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 162 yards and four scores. Granted, the game was against FCS-level Mercer, but Auburn fans still left feeling optimistic about the future.
The other four quarterbacks Walker White, Hank Brown, Holden Geriner, and Dematrius Davis Jr. made almost no impact with the Tigers. Brown did play well in the second half of the 2023 Music City Bowl, but by then Maryland was already cruising to a win. As for White, Geriner, and Davis, even a devoted Auburn fan or historian would struggle to recall their names just five years from now.
So with Gary Chatman Jr. committing to Auburn on Saturday, he has a chance to do something few recent high school QB signees have managed on the Plains: actually make a difference.
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