Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze has massive recruiting day to start the week

Auburn football head coach Hugh Freeze was winning all day on Monday, May 16, bringing on two recruits via the transfer portal from North Texas: wide receiver Jyaire Shorter and linebacker Larry Nixon III. As students leave AU and the summer months begin to melt the Yellowhammer State, a Freeze warning remains in effect on the recruiting trail.

Shorter hauled in 23 passes, good for 628 yards, and 11 touchdowns during a 7-7 season for the Mean Green in 2022. With the receiving corps undergoing an overhaul from the new coaching staff, Shorter adds another potential breakout weapon for incoming former Michigan State transfer signal-caller Payton Thorne.

Nixon had 105 tackles, (5.5 for a loss) and a sack. Given the previous portal defections in the Tigers’ LB room in 2023, the addition provides much-needed depth in a Ron Roberts-coached defense that is aiming to increase turnovers and make more game-changing plays.

Auburn football transfer passed on the chance to join position coach from shared days on Plains

Auburn football transfer Dylan Brooks, who joined Kansas on May 15, allegedly passed on the chance to rejoin his former Tigers defensive line coach Roc Bellantoni, per KUSports.com’s Connor Becker.

“Seeking a new home, Brooks reopened his recruitment after his former position coach, Roc Bellantoni, took the defensive coordinator and linebackers coaching roles at Florida Atlantic,” Becker wrote. “Passing up a chance to rejoin his coach at FAU, Brooks is set to arrive in Lawrence with three years of eligibility after redshirting at Auburn during the 2021 season.”

Brooks was one of the first defensive commitments of the Bryan Harsin era, but like many of his Class of 2021 peers, the Roanoke, Alabama native never found his stride within the Tigers’ defense.

Brooks now joins a Jayhawks defense that was ranked in the bottom five out of all Division I FBS schools during the 2022 season.