Auburn Tigers News: Auburn football hires Derrick Nix plus transfer portal updates

In today's edition of Auburn Tigers news, the Auburn football program has hired a new offensive coordinator and several players have entered the transfer portal

After parting ways with several staffers in recent weeks, the Auburn football program has brought on a new hire. Derrick Nix, former Ole Miss assistant head coach and wide receivers coach, will be Auburn's next offensive coordinator under head coach Hugh Freeze.

Nix spent 16 years at Ole Miss, serving as the running backs coach for 12 seasons before shifting wide receivers coach for the last four seasons. He has also been the assistant head coach for two seasons.

In addition to coordinating the offense, Nix will also coach the running backs, replacing Cadillac Williams, who resigned last week alongside secondary coach Zac Etheridge. Charles Kelly was hired as defensive coordinator to replace Ron Roberts.

Several Auburn football players have entered the transfer portal

Over the last few days, the Tigers have seen several more players enter the NCAA transfer portal. A pair of defensive playmakers, Cam Riley and Donovan Kaufman, will be parting ways with Auburn football ahead of the 2024 season.

Riley, a senior linebacker, spent four years on the Plains and finally broke into the starting rotation in 2022. Over 46 games as a Tiger, Riley recorded 120 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, and two passes deflected.

Kaufman, a senior safety, transferred to Auburn from Vanderbilt in 2021 and quickly became a regular contributor on the defense. A pretty big loss for the Tigers, Kaufman was expected to take over Keionte Scott's role as a starter next season, per AL.com. Over three seasons at Auburn, the safety racked up 109 tackles, two sacks, six passes deflected, six forced fumbles, and and one fumble recovery.

Both transfer out on the heels of several defensive staffing changeups and will have one year of eligibility left.