THOMASVILLE — As the offers have poured in for Thomas County Central football players this season, one of the best on the team has made a decision. Four star defensive back and junior Dee Reddick has announced that he is committing to play college football at Auburn.

Reddick has received a bevy of offers from top schools, including Alabama, Michigan, Arkansas, Florida, Ole Miss and North Carolina. But, the day before Central traveled to take on Houston County, Reddick made a commitment to the Tigers of Auburn. He showed Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze exactly what he’s getting in that game against the Bears the next day. The latest SEC commit had ten total tackles against Houston County, a tackle for a loss and an interception

“It’s awesome. We’re excited about all of our kids that get an opportunity to go off and play at other schools,” said Central head coach Justin Rogers. “Obviously, when you get a high profile school it’s great to continue to bring attention to our program. We feel like it’s important for us to try to help promote these kids and give them opportunities to continue to play football if that’s what they chose to do.”

Reddick is described by Rogers as an incredible athlete with a unique skill set. He not only dominates on defense, but also helped fix the Yellow Jackets special teams. Early in the season, Central struggled to field punts cleanly and had multiple muffs. But, when Rogers slotted Reddick in as punt and kick returner the problem vanished and Reddick shined, returning several punts back for touchdowns this season.

“First off they’re getting an unbelievable competitor. I mean, he’s just such a great competitor,” Rogers said. “Monday afternoon to Friday night, it doesn’t matter he competes. And then just an all around athlete. His skill set is so unique in the amount of things he can do from be physical and get into the box to covering to really good hands. He’s just a very naturally skilled athlete.”

Rogers also described his top defensive player as a guy of boundless energy and a joy for any locker room.

“Full of energy. I mean, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him tired,” Rogers said. “Always just has so much energy. So, just great for the locker room, great for the team. He’s charismatic and you are drawn to him with his personality and how outgoing he is. Just a great person.”

When asked what Reddick’s recruitment was like, Rogers said that it was very active with a lot of top programs vying for the four star athlete. It’s easy to let something like that go to a player’s head at a young age, but Rogers said Reddick hasn’t let the attention change who he is at heart.

“Dee is Dee,” Rogers said. “Dee ain’t changed a bit. He is the exact same sophomore when I got hired that I walked in here and met today as he was then. He’s just a great kid.”

As for the situation Reddick will be entering, it couldn’t be more perfect. First year head coach Hugh Freeze is working on turning the Auburn program around, which fell into dust under the former coaching staff. Auburn is currently 3-4, but that is to be expected.

With two years of recruiting from high school and the transfer portal and time to get the program pointed in the right direction, by the time Reddick steps onto the Auburn campus the Tigers should be back to their winning ways.