Auburn Lands All-Conference DB from Transfer Portal

Alex Golesh is set to bring another USF player with him to Auburn.

Alex Golesh is set to bring another USF player with him to Auburn. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Alex Golesh seems to already be reloading his first Auburn Tigers roster, which lost over 30 players as the transfer portal opened just a few days ago. Despite the loss of five different cornerbacks, Golesh seems to have found his guys in his former team, the USF Bulls.

On Monday, Fred Gaskin, the 88th-ranked safety in the portal, announced that he’d be committing to Auburn for the 2026 season. He’s a 5-foot-11, 200-pound defensive back/safety hybrid with two years of remaining eligibility and was a three-star prospect out of high school.

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BREAKING: USF starting transfer DB Fred Gaskin has Committed to Auburn, he tells @On3Sports

The 5’11 200 DB totaled 53 Tackles, 2 INT, 2 PBU, 1 FF, & 2 FR this season

Earned All-AAC Conference honors

He’ll have 2 years of eligibility lefthttps://t.co/RlUbB6EMhS pic.twitter.com/OsCtJAdZTg

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) January 5, 2026

Throughout his sophomore season with Golesh’s South Florida Bulls, Gaskin managed to accumulate 53 total tackles, 28 solo tackles, a forced fumble, two passes defended and two interceptions. 

All of Gaskin’s top-tier metrics earned him a spot on the AAC All-Conference list, marking him as the second all-conference corner to join the Tigers through the portal in as many years, as Raion Strader, who’s since departed the Plains for the portal, was also an all-conference defensive back at Miami of Ohio.

DJ Durkin’s once-strong defense certainly took a hit with the loss of Keldric Faulk to the 2026 NFL Draft, but it then continued to take hit after hit as many defensive pieces announced their intent to transfer.

At the cornerback position alone, Durkin’s already lost the aforementioned Raion Strader, Kayin Lee, Donovan Starr, Jay Crawford and A’mon Lane-Ganus. As such, Gaskin should have ample opportunity to find a role within the Tigers’ 2026 defense, which is still short on parts despite Golesh’s eight portal acquisitions.

Golesh has yet to land a transfer from anywhere except South Florida, where many of his former players have decided to follow their coach to the Plains. Though it’s certainly encouraging to see a coach whose players want to play for him, Tiger fans would surely love to see Golesh land the commitment of a prospect from another university.