Which Tigers are headed to the portal after this season?
The Auburn football team has just finished up their second season under head coach Hugh Freeze, and it's safe to say that the Tigers didn't have the year everyone expected them to have. While no one thought Auburn was playing for a national championship, there was expected to be improvement with all the new players added to the roster.
The Tigers ended the 2024 season at 5-7 with two conference wins over Kentucky and Texas A&M and a lot of brutal, close losses. Many of Auburn's key players will be out of eligibility after this season, like Jarquez Hunter, Payton Thorne, and Rivaldo Fairweather, and other players are already announcing their intentions to hit the transfer portal, which will officially open on Monday, December 9, and remain open until Saturday, December 28. Graduate transfers are allowed to enter the portal at any time, but other players must wait until the portal officially opens.
So far, three Auburn football players have actually entered the portal:
1. Holden Geriner - Redshirt Sophomore - Quarterback
2. Gage Keys - Redshirt Junior - Defensive lineman
3. Grant Hidalgo - Redshirt Junior - Tight end
Holden Geriner was recruited to the Plains by Bryan Harsin in the recruiting class of 2022. He was a 4-star and ranked the #15 QB in the nation. Though he never saw any meaningful in-game minutes at the position, he played in eight games as a Tiger.
Hidalgo spent two years at Auburn after transferring from Indiana and played in four games for the Tigers. Keys spent only one season in orange and blue and hoped to become a fixture on the Tigers' defensive line, but only played two games.
Two more Auburn football players have announced intentions to enter the portal once it opens:
1. Micah Riley - Redshirt Sophomore - Tight end
2. EJ Harris - Redshirt Sophomore - Offensive lineman
Micah Riley spent three years on the Plains, played in 29 games, and recorded 3 receptions for 43 yards and two touchdowns in his Auburn career. Harris redshirted as a freshman, and saw game action in six matchups for the Tigers in his next two years.