For the last decade the Auburn defense has been the lone consistent bright spot for football fans to hold on to hope for. Even with three different coaching regimes, the defense has remained consistently good – and honestly, underrated.
Auburn was the only team to play the Joe Burrow-led 2019 LSU Tigers well. They were also the reason that Auburn was in games against Georgia and Alabama last year despite a lack of talent on the offense. The Auburn defense has remained steady through key contributors each year.
In this preview article, we will look at who those key contributors are and who could vault into that role this year. Similar to the offensive preview, we will look at this position-by-position starting with Edge/defensive line, moving to the core in Auburn’s linebackers, and then finishing with the secondary. As usual, we will also take a look at any recruiting news in the recruiting roundup.
Auburn football defensive line
Defensive line is a position that Auburn has historically produced NFL talent at. However, this year that might be their biggest question mark on the defense.
The main returning defensive linemen are Keldric Faulk and Jalen McLeod. Faulk had 36 tackles and only one sack last year, while Jalen McLeod had 50 tackles and 5.5 sacks.
The potential breakout that could happen is with freshman defensive lineman Amaris Williams. Williams, or one of the many freshmen defensive linemen, will have to step up to fill the shoes of defensive tackle Marcus Harris. Harris had 40 tackles while his seven sacks lead the team last year. That production will be severely missed on the Auburn defense, but with the way head coach Hugh Freeze has been recruiting, there is a lot of potential.
The linebacker core
One reason the defensive line isn’t as concerning is the returning linebacker play, led by senior Eugene Asante – who we will get to in a minute.
Graduate transfer Fa’Najae Gotay, returning senior Austin Keys and transfer Dorian Mausi Jr. will all need to continue their previous production next to Asante to help boost the defensive line. In his final two season at Maryland, Gotay produced 81 total tackles and three sacks. Meanwhile, Keys had 30 tackles and two sacks in 2023-2024 season. Finally, Mausi Jr. was a monster at Duke, compiling 193 total tackles and 8.5 tackles for loss. If he’s able to match that production, the Auburn defense will be more than happy.
However, the leader of this defense is Asante. Asante broke out in the Auburn defense last year with 86 tackles and five sacks. He will be chomping at the bit to match his previous production.
The defensive backfield
The most experienced yet underrated position group, the defensive backfield will be a cornerstone for the Auburn defense this season.
Keionte Scott and Kayin Lee lead the team in pass deflections last year, closely followed by redshirt freshman Sylvester Smith. Scott was also top-5 on the team in tackles last season and will be a pivotal leader for the team.
Meanwhile incoming transfers Antwon Fegans and Jahquez Robinson were highly touted recruits via the portal. While they had modest production at their previous schools, there is an opportunity to replace key production with Jaylin Simpson, Zion Puckett and Nehemiah Pritchett no longer on the team. Freshman A’mon Lane-Ganus is a four-star recruit that is expected to make an impact in the Auburn football team.
Recruiting roundup
Since the last recruiting roundup, two big things have occurred. First and foremost, current Notre Dame commit Deuce Knight, has scheduled his official visit for Auburn. This would be a huge get for Auburn, adding a current four-star quarterback who will likely end up as a five-star when things are all said and done.
The other big piece of recruiting news is Auburn flipped four-star defensive end Nate Marshall from Michigan. As mentioned above, defensive line is a current question mark within the Auburn defense. Adding the No. 1 defensive end in the country is incredibly important to changing that.
Conclusion
The Auburn defense lost a handful of key contributors from last year’s team. However, coach Freeze has recruited well to potentially replace them. The good news for Freeze and company is that the defense has been able to replace these players time and time again. They will need key freshmen and transfers to step up at multiple positions, while returning players must match or exceed their production from last year for this team to meet expectations of Auburn fans every where.
