Massive Day on The Plains : Auburn Secures Two New Commits

Steven Pearl has been on fire recently with recruiting. Today, he landed two major rotational pieces who will play a key role in next year’s season.

Pearl landed one of his main portal targets in Thomas Dowd. The 6’8”, first-team All–Sun Belt selection gives Auburn the frontcourt experience it needs. The Alabama native averaged 14.4 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game while playing 36 minutes per game for Troy this season. Dowd recorded 17 double-doubles this season and continues to improve year by year. In the Tigers’ offense, he could play at the 4 or even the 3. He is a major frontcourt piece who is very versatile, with size and strong rebounding ability.

Troy Transfer Thomas Dowd

Pearl also landed another frontcourt piece with the commitment of 6’10” Creighton forward Owen Freeman. He comes to Auburn as a high-risk, high-reward addition. In his freshman year at Iowa, he was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and put himself on the map after a huge debut season. He averaged 10.6 points and 6.6 rebounds per game during the 2023–2024 season.

In his sophomore year, he averaged 16.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game over 19 games before suffering a finger injury that required season-ending surgery. He then transferred to Creighton and was named preseason All–Big East, but he barely played. He suffered a meniscus injury between his seasons at Iowa and Creighton and never returned to full form that year, averaging 5 points and 4 rebounds per game.

Will he get back to his pre-injury form, or did Steven take a chance and miss?