Young DB Announces Return to Auburn Tigers

Auburn has officially retained three members of the secondary in the last 24 hours.

Auburn has officially retained three members of the secondary in the last 24 hours. | Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Auburn Tigers cornerback Blake Woodby announced today he would be rejoining the team for 2026, via his own account on X. Woodby is the second member of the Auburn secondary to announce he will be returning in the last 24 hours, joining safeties AnQuon Fegans and Eric Winters.

Woodby is a rising sophomore who played in 11 games for the Tigers as a true freshman in 2025. He is a former 4-star recruit in the 247 Sports Composite, ranking No. 116 in the nation, No. 17 at his position, and the No. 4 player from his home state of Maryland.

Let’s get to it. 🦅 #SBG pic.twitter.com/stsfRxVPsK

— Blake “Bobble” Woodby (@blake_woodby) January 3, 2026

Despite seeing most of his time as a special teamer, Woodby did play snaps at corner in five of the Tigers’ games, including Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and Georgia. Those three games were the only ones in which he recorded double-digit snaps in coverage on the season via Pro Football Focus. 

In his limited action, Woodby recorded 2 tackles and allowed 2 catches on 4 total targets. His play earned him a 67.2 coverage grade, and 65.9 run defense grade, and 66.2 overall grade via PFF. That grade, though of a small sample, is higher than the marks that both Kayin Lee and Rayshawn Pleasant earned for the Tigers in 2025.

The return of Woodby is something that Auburn needed badly, as many of the Tigers’ corners have entered the transfer portal already. Starting tandem Jay Crawford and Kayin Lee both announced their intent to enter the portal in mid-December, with freshman Donovan Starr joining them days later. 

With the addition of Kensley Louidor-Faustin to the list of names in the portal, Woodby, former Tulane transfer Rayshawn Pleasant, and freshman defensive back Sylvester Smith are the only remaining players on Auburn’s roster that recorded snaps at either corner or slot cornerback in 2025.

Even with Woodby’s announcement, Alex Golesh and his staff will obviously need to target cornerback in the portal to shore up the position following the avalanche of recent departures. According to On3, there are already 7 corners in the portal that rank as a 4-star transfer or higher, not including Auburn’s own Jay Crawford.

Some will be available, while others continue to schedule visits with other programs. However, the Tigers will still have a solid young core to build around in the secondary thanks to Woodby and their young stable of safeties including Eric Winters and Kaleb Harris.