Mary Montgomery’s D.J. Broughton the first to commit to Auburn coach Alex Golesh

 

 

By JIMMY WIGFIELD

It took one phone call on Monday to make Mary G. Montgomery tight end D.J. Broughton the first player to commit to newly installed Auburn coach Alex Golesh.

“You ready to come with me?” Golesh asked Broughton.

“You already know I am,” Broughton replied.

Broughton had previously committed to Golesh at South Florida and it took one second for him to flip to the Tigers, declaring an affinity for a man who coached the tight ends at Toledo, Illinois, Iowa State, Central Florida and Tennessee.

“It was an easy decision,” Broughton said. “I want to play for coach Golesh. He always told me that he wanted me to play for him.”

Vikings coach Zach Golson said there’s a natural fit between Broughton and Golesh’s system.

“Coach Golesh and the staff at South Florida had identified D.J. six months ago as a guy that fit their system and they’ve done an incredible job building a relationship with him,” Golson said. “Based on that staff, the way they use the tight ends, the way they develop the tight ends, I felt like that was a great fit for him. It’s really cool for D.J. He deserves it. He’s worked really hard. He’s got a lot of gifts.”

The 6-5, 225-pound Broughton, who runs a 4.6 40, had 32 catches for 497 yards and seven touchdowns in 2025 as MGM finished 10-2.

Broughton has been described as a wide receiver in a tight end’s body.

“He definitely has those kind of skills,” Golson said. “but I feel like the best way to describe him is he’s a football player. I think there’s still some development to do as far as the blocking but he has a natural aggressiveness about him. He was a physical blocker for us on the perimeter and in the box. We used him in a lot of different ways. He still has some developing to do physically and put on some weight but he’s already a great athlete.”

Broughton said he likes the way Golesh uses tight ends.

“He does a lot of 12 personnel,” Broughton said. “He keeps two tight ends on the field most of the game, so he throws it to the tight ends a lot.”

Golesh said Monday that he expects to turn Auburn around quickly

“What you’re going to get from me, from our staff and, as we get rolling, our players is the hardest-working, toughest, grittiest program in the entire country,” Golesh said. “We’re in a race against ourselves to take these elite resources and give what these Auburn fans deserve in every imaginable way. We’re in a race against ourselves to do it as fast as we can.”

Broughton said he anticipates nothing less.

“Most definitely,” Broughton said. “He’s an amazing coach. You know, whatever he says, I believe it. … I feel like I can get some early action. Of course, I’m going to put on some more weight and stuff but I feel like I can.”

Broughton said Golson prepared him for the rigors of SEC football.

“He prepared me the right way,” Broughton said. “He put me in the box, blocking in the box. He put me outside running routes. He did a lot of things to prepare me for the next level.”