4-Star John Broussard on Committing to Auburn: 'It Just Felt Like Home'

Phenix City, Alabama, cornerback John Broussard described the last two weeks in one word—stressful. Thursday morning couldn't come fast enough.

When it was time for the 4-star defensive back to make his commitment, you could almost see all the stress disappearing. And for Auburn, its version of stress—stemming from whether or not it would land Broussard on Thursday—turned into jubilation.

In front of family, coaches, teammates and classmates at Central High School, Broussard verbally committed to Auburn and became the Tigers' sixth commitment of the 2016 class. Broussard, the nation's eighth-ranked cornerback, also became Auburn's highest-ranked pledge of the class.

And when it was over, Broussard substituted "stressful" with a new word to define life.

"Relieved," Broussard said. "It's finally coming to an end. It's all been good, going out and seeing stuff I've never seen before, but I'm glad it's over now."

Broussard chose Auburn over LSU and Mississippi State. It was a big win for head coach Gus Malzahn, defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson, defensive coordinator Will Muschamp and the rest of the staff, as the class now has a marquee name in the secondary. It may have been even bigger, however, for another reason: Broussard chose Auburn over a school he's always admired in LSU.

"LSU is a great school. It was almost like a dream school for me," he said. "I always thought about playing for LSU. [Defensive backs] Coach [Corey] Raymond is a great coach, and they've been on me for a minute.

"But Auburn's a great school, too. Coach Muschamp and Coach T-Rob [defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson] are trying to bring it all together on defense. Plus, I have a great relationship with Coach Malzahn. I know I can just sit and talk with him."

Broussard's decision took a lot of the sting out of Wednesday's news, when Auburn received word that 5-star wide receiver Nate Craig-Myers decided to back out of his commitment, according to Josh Newberg of 247Sports, to explore other options. Broussard won't solve any offensive questions, but he's definitely going to help the team defensively, particularly at a position of need in a conference loaded with talented wide receivers.

Broussard said the decision was tough, as he's built great relationships with all three defensive backs coaches in play—Robinson, Raymond and Mississippi State's Deshea Townsend. He said it was difficult "keeping one coach and letting two others down."

But in the end, Auburn won a big recruiting battle and will get a rangy shutdown cornerback with good size and speed. At 6'0" and 164 pounds, Broussard is a streamlined defender who has good makeup speed and a knack for breaking up passes.

In choosing a school, Broussard said all three schools had similar qualities. They are all solid SEC programs that have great coaches who know how to win. With Auburn roughly 30 miles away from his home, unofficial visits were easy, and, per 247Sports, he took three visits to the campus in March and a fourth this past Sunday.

Chalk up the campus environment as an X-factor in Broussard's final decision.

"When I first got on campus and took a tour and walked with all coaches, it just felt like home," Broussard said. "As soon as I visited, I knew I liked it."

Broussard added that he said the coaches are excited about him getting a shot to play early. Broussard is looking to capitalize on the team losing a couple of seniors next fall.

More importantly, he's looking forward to starting the next chapter of his football career, the first step in his goal of becoming a standout SEC cornerback.

"It'll be a great opportunity for me, but of course, I know I'll have to work for the position," he said. "They said I can work for it and play, and that's what I'm going to do."

Damon Sayles is a National Recruiting Analyst for Bleacher Report. All quotes were obtained firsthand. All player ratings are courtesy of 247Sports' composite ratings. Follow Damon via Twitter: @DamonSayles