Auburn Football: 3 potential transfer portal RB options
The Auburn football running back room has been a group that has experienced more turnover than any other positional unit for any team across the country. Devin Barrett announced his transfer today, which marks the 4th running back that will head elsewhere this offseason and includes talented players such as D.J. Williams, Harold Joiner, and Mark-Anthony Richards.
This suggests Auburn football will be looking to land 1-2 players from the transfer portal to add depth behind lead running back Tank Bigsby and backup Shaun Shivers. The Tigers could also lean on true freshman running back Jacquez Hunter, but odds are that Harsin would like to add some experience behind Bigsby and Shivers, since both have been injured in previous seasons on the Plains.
We breakdown the top options for the Tigers right now at the running back spot and look at some of the top options in the transfer portal as Auburn prepares to reload at the running spot.
Auburn football RB transfer option #1: Keyon Henry-Brooks
The first option comes out of the SEC and a school where Auburn football has already showed success landing transfers from (Donovan Kauffman). Keyon Henry-Brooks may be the most underrated running back in the portal right now, which he has been since February 25th.
Henry-Brooks led the Commodores last season in rushing yards (494), while racking up two touchdowns and over 250 yards receiving. He was also the only running back in the SEC to have two game or more of 80+ receiving yards.
Henry-Brooks is multi-purpose, explosive, and experienced running back; that has excelled in the SEC against some of the best defenses in the country. Out of high school, Henry-Brooks was the Cobb County Back of the Year, All-Region 1st Team, and led Cobb County in rushing yards as a junior.
The relationship between Henry-Brooks and Derek Mason will be the key for Auburn in this recruitment, but if the Tigers can land a talented SEC player such as Henry-Brooks then the running back room will be stable again. Landing Henry-Brooks could also give Auburn football one of the most deadly running back rooms in the country, with three running backs having major SEC experience.
It remains to be seen if the Tigers pursue Henry-Brooks, but Auburn football was assumed to be a favorite the moment the news broke about Henry-Brooks transferring out of Vanderbilt. Keep an eye on the recruitment and do not count Derek Mason and the Tigers out of this race for the talented back out of Vandy.