One of the top players in the Class of 2015 will reportedly ply his football wares elsewhere.
As reported by 247Sports.com‘s Brandon Marcello and subsequently confirmed by al.com, Byron Cowart requested a release from his Auburn scholarship at some point Monday. Tuesday morning, the former reported, that release was granted.
There’s no word yet on what stipulations were attached to the release, or the reasons behind the original request.
Regardless of the why, there’s little doubt the defensive lineman’s on-field play failed to live up to his recruiting pedigree.
A consensus five-star signee, Cowart was rated by Rivals.com as the No. 1 player in the Class of 2014 while 247Sports.com had Florida product as the No. 3 player overall on its composite board. In 26 career games, Cowart was credited with 15 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss. He was one of four Tigers arrested for marijuana possession in May of last year.
This past spring, Cowart was moved from end to tackle in an attempt to jumpstart his career. In three games at his new position this season, he had three tackles and half a tackle for loss in three games.