Auburn Briefing: Portal SZN is here

We've already seen what this new era of college football looks like during the offseason. Thousands of players flood the transfer portal in hope of finding a better situation than the one they left behind them.

Some leave on their own accord, others are asked to leave by their coaching staff. Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers will look to bolster this roster in the coming weeks at multiple positions when the portal opens on April 15th.

This is the first of a new daily series here on Auburn Daily where we give you a few Auburn and college sports stories every morning to get you going throughout your day.

Portal SZN

Until last week, almost every outlet had been referring to the transfer portal opening up on May 1st but back in the October meetings of the NCAA's Division 1A council, they elected to move the window from April 15-30 as opposed to May 1-15.

Here are some positions that I believe Auburn will pursue in the portal.

Quarterback

I'd be shocked if Robby Ashford, TJ Finley, and Holden Geriner were all three on the roster in 2023. With Hank Brown coming in the summer, Freeze will want more competition at the position to start fall camp.

Offensive line

I think this staff likes the starting five plus Connor Lew. Depth leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to Auburn's current talent in the trenches.

Wide receiver

I currently believe this is the weakest position group on the team. After the top three options, there is not a ton of proven success in the room.

Jack

We've heard great things about Keldric Faulk and Elijah McAllister has been exactly what we thought he would be after transferring from Vanderbilt. After that, it gets dicey.

Safety

I've talked to members of the team and many believe safety will be a position that they prioritize to add depth and experience on the back end.

Auburn rush defense

A big takeaway from most who watched A-Day was how well Auburn ran the ball and how the defense didn't have an answer for it. Talking with members close to the program, a discussion regarding the tape from A-Day was that they gave up more runs to the outside than they wanted to. Containment was a weakness for the Auburn defense on Saturday.

They also did not tackle at the level that they have all spring. I'm sure the wet weather had an impact but that shouldn't be an excuse for poor tackling when the season starts in September.

We wrote it

Reacting to Auburn's A-Day, Auburn Daily's Lance Dawe shared some winners and losers from the Tigers' spring game.

Auburn ran the ball with a bit more ease than perhaps anticipated during the scrimmage. Is that a reflection on the defense which is expected to become better at stopping the ground game, or maybe a sign of an improved offensive line?
According to Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze, it's the o-line that caught his attention.
"I'm cautiously optimistic that we're gonna have a decent offensive line," Freeze said following Auburn's spring game.
The Tigers ran the ball 51 times for 280 total yards, a solid 5.5 yards per carry. Keep in mind the weather conditions were less than kind; even through the wind and chaos, with a defense likely expecting the run to be more prominent, Auburn's o-line held strong.

Some Stories from A-Day

Takeaways from A-Day

Quarterback deep dive

Watch highlights from A-Day

A-Day Gallery

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