Auburn LB Cam Riley, DB Donovan Kaufman anticipated to enter transfer portal
Auburn is poised to lose two significant members of its defense to the transfer site, according to sources from 247Sports and On3.
Linebacker Cam Riley and versatile defensive back Donovan Kaufman are also slated to exit the organization. The revelation comes just after Auburn made significant changes to their defensive coaching staff.
Defensive coordinator Ron Roberts allegedly will not return to Auburn and will take a new job at Florida. Defensive backs coach Zac Etheridge announced he stepped away from his position late last week.
Both Riley and Kaufman have been reliable players to Auburn’s defense over multiple years with the Tigers and each will have one more year of eligibility.
Kaufman comes to Auburn in 2021 after transferring from Vanderbilt. He was a starter at safety in 2021 and 2022 before transitioning into a nickel cornerback role in 2023. Kaufman started in place of teammate defensive back Keionte Scott when he missed time this season with an ankle ailment.
With Scott moving into an outside cornerback role next season, Kaufman was mostly projected to take his place as a starter going into the 2024 season.
Kaufman had 109 total tackles at Auburn along with two interceptions and six forced fumbles.
Riley has played in 46 games over the last four years at Auburn including all 13 under the first year with head coach Hugh Freeze. He played both inside and outside linebacker positions over his career at Auburn, and during the 2023 season, numerous coaches considered deploying Riley as more of a pass-rushing jack linebacker.
As a result, Riley recorded 2.5 sacks in 2023 after not having any sacks in his career prior. In turn, that meant his total tackle counts plummeted from 65 in 2022 to 32 in 2023.
Auburn added defensive back Jerrin Thompson out of the transfer portal from Texas on Monday. He is the natural fit to replace Kaufman.
Auburn also pulled in highly rated high school linebacker Demarcus Riddick who is already practicing with Auburn as well as Dorian Mausi from Duke.
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