Auburn Morning Rush: Cadillac Williams talks being head coach, women’s basketball wins exhibition
It is nearly the weekend Auburn fans but we have to get through Friday first and there is no better way to start your morning than with the Auburn Morning Rush.
Up first is Cadillac Williams, who talked about what it means to take over as Auburn’s head coach and to be the program’s first Black head coach. For the second straight night there was basketball in Neville Arena, this time it was the women’s program picking up the win. They took down Tuskegee 81-59 in an exhibition game.
Finally is the gymnastics program, which added two commits in the 2023 recruiting cycle and is continuing to stack elite recruiting classes.
Cadillac Williams is 'ecstatic' to be head coach
Todd Van Emst/AU Athletics
It took a little bit but it finally hit Cadillac Williams what it means to be named Auburn’s head coach.
He sat down with Greg Ostendorf of AuburnTigers.com ahead of Auburn’s game against Mississippi State and discussed when it hit him and how it felt to be the head coach for Auburn.
It didn’t hit me until Tuesday morning. I got home. It was a long night Monday night, so I was running on a couple hours of sleep. I got up around 4:30 a.m. and got going, jumped in the shower and went to kiss my boys goodbye. I woke them up real quick and told them, “Hey, Daddy is the head coach at Auburn.” They were like, “Yeah Daddy, I know you’re the head coach.” And then he hit me. He said, “But Daddy, it’s only temporary.” I got a kick out of that. But then he mentioned something. He asked me, “Daddy, are you the first Black head coach?” I said, “Yes.” That is when, I was driving to work this morning, where it hit me the magnitude of what this truly is. I don’t want to make this about me. All glory to God. But it’s such a huge deal and an honor. I am ecstatic.
He also talked about being Auburn’s first Black head coach.
Honestly, it means the world to me. I had the opportunity to play in the National Football League. That was one of my greatest accomplishments. But getting this opportunity, it has been heavy on me. Because there are so many people that have paved the way for myself to have this opportunity. It’s almost unexplainable, like somebody needs to wake me up.
Auburn women beat Tuskegee 81-59 in exhibition
Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers
The Auburn women picked up a dominant 81-59 win over Tuskegee Friday night in their exhibition showdown.
The Tigers were led by junior Aicha Coulibaly who scored 16 points and added 12 rebounds. She also had four assists, two blocks, and two steals.
Auburn’s defense did a great job of shutting down the GoldenTigers’ offense. They held them to 28.8% shooting from the field and 18.2% from three-point range.
Auburn will open the season Tuesday in Neville Arena against Sam Houston.
Gymnastics adds Emma Grace Boyd and Paige Zancan to 2023 recruiting class
Jake Crandall / USA TODAY NETWORK
Jeff Graba continues to build an impressive recruiting class for Auburn gymnastics. The Tigers added three-star gymnasts Emma Grace Boyd and Paige Zancan to their 2023 recruiting class this week.
Boyd was originally committed to the Georgia Bulldogs before flipping her commitment to Auburn.
The additions give Auburn five commits in the 2023 class, five-star Julianne Huff, four-star Lyden Saltness, three-stars Boyd and Zancan, and unranked Bryn Bartman.
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