Auburn true freshman praised for standout Week 2 showing

It was a long trip to the West Coast, but the Auburn football team pulled off a big victory over the Cal Golden Bears last weekend. Though the point difference wasn’t big (14-10), the Tigers showed mental toughness and strength by not giving up and finding a way to win.

A lot of that credit has to go to the defense, for holding Cal to several field goals that resulted in zero points for the Golden Bears. Eugene Asante was certainly an MVP of the game, but coaches and players had high compliments for a much younger member of the defense.

True freshman Kayin Lee has been taking up the starting cornerback position in place of Nehemiah Pritchett, who is dealing with an injury, and Cal zeroed in on the newbie as someone to test in Saturday night’s game.

But Lee rose to the challenge, finishing the matchup with three tackles and two pass breakups, and was excited by his performance last weekend, per Auburn Rivals:

"“I felt like when they tried me off the rip, coach Crime was telling me that it was going to happen all game because I’m a freshman,” said Lee. “That was pretty exciting. I wish I could have made an even better play on the ball. Knowing I did my job was exciting and just being able to go out there and play fast.”"

Junior nickel Keionte Scott called Lee a “valuable player in our defense for sure,” and praised the true freshman for defending well and showing his talent. Head coach Hugh Freeze noted that the team is “glad to have” Lee and that while he’s already good there is definitely room for improvement.

Though we can expect Pritchett to return to the lineup soon, it’s likely that Lee will continue to play a role in Auburn football’s defense throughout the rest of the 2023 season.