Transfer Tracker: Auburn signs eight in the spring portal window

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Austin Perryman/AU Athletics

As the 2023 season approaches, Auburn is always looking for ways to enhance its roster through the transfer portal. This is your one-stop shop to read up on all the additions this spring and the newcomers you will see at Jordan-Hare Stadium in the fall.
 

PositionPlayerPrevious TeamSigned
WRShane HooksJackson StateMay 22
OLBStephen Sings VLibertyMay 21
LBLarry Nixon IIINorth TexasMay 16
WRJyaire ShorterNorth TexasMay 16
OLJaden MuskratTulsaMay 9
WRCaleb Burton IIIOhio StateMay 6
QBPayton ThorneMichigan StateMay 5
OLBJalen McLeodAppalachian StateMay 2

 

Tigers go 'Hollywood,' add big-time wide receiver Monday, May 22

Signing Jackson State wide receiver Shane 'Hollywood' Hooks was another big pick-up for Auburn … literally. Listed at 6-foot-4, 205 pounds, Hooks caught more touchdowns last year (10) than all of Auburn's wide receivers combined. 

Hooks, a Second Team All-SWAC selection in 2022, finished the season with 66 catches for 775 yards and 10 touchdowns. He initially committed to Ole Miss following his breakout year but backed off his pledge and signed with the Tigers instead. Per 247 Sports, he also had offers from UCF, Liberty, Louisville, Mississippi State and Utah. 

Hooks is the fourth wide receiver to sign with Auburn out of the portal, joining the likes of Jyaire Shorter (North Texas), Caleb Burton III (Ohio State) and Nick Mardner (Cincinnati). The Tigers also added tight end transfer Rivaldo Fairweather from Florida International. 

Hooks will have one year of eligibility remaining at Auburn. He is incoming transfer No. 20 for the Tigers since head coach Hugh Freeze took over. 

Shane Hooks (Jackson State)
Wide Receiver, 6-4, 205
Olympia HS; Orlando, Fla.
 


Auburn signs pass-rusher from Liberty Sunday, May 21

There's a familiarity with Auburn's newest transfer signee, Stephen Sings V. He played for Hugh Freeze and Josh Aldridge the last three years at Liberty. The edge rusher tallied 48 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks in three seasons with the Flames. 

Sings, who will have two years of eligibility remaining at Auburn, will compete at the jack linebacker spot where the new staff has been busy, adding transfers Elijah McAllister (Vanderbilt) and Jalen McLeod (Appalachian State) along with incoming freshmen Keldric Faulk and Brenton Williams. 

Sings is the 19th transfer portal addition for Auburn in this class and the seventh transfer to sign with the Tigers in the spring window. 

Stephen Sings V (Liberty)
Outside Linebacker, 6-3, 255
Zebulon B. Vance HS; Charlotte, N.C.
 


First Team All-C-USA linebacker chooses Auburn Tuesday, May 16

Just hours after teammate Jyaire Shorter signed with Auburn on Tuesday, Larry Nixon III followed suit. The North Texas linebacker, a First Team All-Conference-USA selection in 2022, will join Shorter on the Plains after making his transfer to Auburn official. 

Nixon played in 14 games last year with eight starts and tallied 106 tackles, fourth-most in Conference-USA. He was one of only 62 players nationally with 100 or more tackles. He had 10 or more tackles in five games, including a career-high 15 tackles against Texas Southern, and he also had 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack for the Mean Green. 

Nixon comes to Auburn as a graduate transfer with one year of eligibility remaining. He also took visits to Miami and West Virginia before making his decision. He's the third linebacker addition from the portal in this class, joining Austin Keys (Ole Miss) and DeMario Tolan (LSU) who signed with the Tigers in December. 

Auburn has now landed six transfers in the second portal window with the additions of Nixon and Shorter on Tuesday. 

Larry Nixon III (North Texas)
Linebacker, 6-2, 236
Richland HS; North Richland Hills, Texas
 

 

Tigers pick up another pass-catcher in portalTuesday, May 16

If the Auburn coaching staff was looking for a guy to stretch the field, they found it in North Texas transfer Jyaire Shorter. The 6-foot-2 wide receiver finished with 628 yards receiving on 23 receptions last year, averaging 27.2 yards per catch – tops in FBS. 

Shorter, an Honorable Mention All-Conference USA selection, was tied for seventh nationally with 11 receiving touchdowns in 2022. He scored at least one touchdown in eight games for the Mean Green. He played in 13 games with 11 starts and was a semifinalist for Comeback Player of the Year after missing the majority of the 2021 season due to injury. 

In five seasons at North Texas, Shorter played in 32 games and caught 58 passes for 1,320 yards and 20 touchdowns.

Shorter is the second wide receiver to sign with Auburn in the second transfer window and the fourth pass-catcher to transfer in since Hugh Freeze took over, joining Caleb Burton III, Nick Mardner and Rivaldo Fairweather, a tight end from Florida International. The Tigers also brought in four-star freshman Daquayvious Sorey as part of the 2023 class. 

Jyaire Shorter (North Texas)
Wide Receiver, 6-2, 218
Ellison HS; Killeen, Texas
 


Auburn bolsters OL with transfer additionTuesday, May 9

The offensive line has been a point of emphasis for Hugh Freeze and his staff since they arrived on campus. That continued Tuesday with the addition of transfer Jaden Muskrat, a veteran offensive lineman from Tulsa. 

Muskrat played in all 12 games for Tulsa last year and started the last nine at right tackle. He played in four games in 2021 and four games while redshirting in 2020. He will have two years of eligibility remaining at Auburn. Per 247 Sports, the 6-foot-3, 307-pound transfer had offers from Arkansas, Ole Miss, Penn State, South Carolina and others. 

Muskrat is the ninth addition on the offensive line for Auburn under Freeze and joins former Tulsa teammate Dillon Wade who signed with the Tigers in December. 

Both Muskrat and Wade played under new Auburn offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery while at Tulsa. Montgomery was the head coach from 2015 to 2022. 

Jaden Muskrat (Tulsa)
Offensive Line, 6-3, 307
Bentonville West HS; Bentonville, Arkansas
 

 

Tigers add four-star WR from Ohio State Saturday, May 6

Auburn signed another Big Ten transfer on Saturday, adding Ohio State wide receiver Caleb Burton III to the mix. Burton did not see action for the Buckeyes as a freshman in 2022 but was a four-star recruit coming out of high school.

Burton, listed at 5-foot-11, 169 pounds, caught 82 passes for 1,515 yards and 18 touchdowns during his freshman and sophomore seasons at Del Valle High School. After missing his junior year with a knee injury, he finished his high school career at Lake Travis High School where he had 49 catches, 845 yards and 15 scores as a senior. 

The speedy Burton was ranked No. 132 nationally in the 247 Composite Rankings. 

In December, Auburn signed a pair of wide receivers in Nick Mardner and Daquayvious Sorey. The former, Mardner, was a transfer from Cincinnati. 

Caleb Burton III (Ohio State)
Wide Receiver, 5-11, 169 
Lake Travis HS; Austin, Texas
 

 

QB Payton Thorne signs with AuburnFriday, May 5

Auburn added a veteran to the quarterback room Friday with the addition of Payton Thorne, a three-year letter winner for Michigan State who was team captain in 2021 and 2022. 

Thorne played in 29 career games for the Spartans, making 26 starts. He ranks fourth in program history in passing touchdowns (49), fifth in completion percentage (60.9 percent), sixth in passing yards (6,494) and eighth in passing efficiency (137.6 rating). He's had five career games with 300-plus passing yards and 13 games where he's thrown multiple touchdowns. 

Last year, Thorne passed for 2,679 yards with 19 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. The season before, he threw for 3,232 yards and 27 touchdowns and guided Michigan State to an 11-2 record and a win in the Peach Bowl. He'll have two years of eligibility remaining at Auburn.

Thorne will compete with Robby Ashford and Holden Geriner for the starting quarterback job. Auburn also signed three-star freshman Hank Brown in December.  

Payton Thorne (Michigan State)
Quarterback, 6-2, 210
Naperville Central HS; Naperville, Illinois
 

 

Auburn lands All-Sun Belt pass rusher in portal Tuesday, May 2

The transfer portal is back open, and Auburn picked up its first addition following spring practice Tuesday with Jalen McLeod, an outside linebacker from Appalachian State. 

In three seasons, McLeod recorded 76 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and nine sacks over 30 games played. He earned Third Team All-Sun Belt honors this past season with 41 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and six sacks. Two of his six sacks came in Appalachian State's upset victory over Texas A&M, a game in which he also forced two fumbles. 

Per PFF, McLeod had 37 quarterback pressures, 23 QB hurries and eight QB hits. His pass-rush grade (90.7) ranked second among Sun Belt edge defenders. 

Looking to replace the likes of Derick Hall and Eku Leota, Auburn signed three other pass rushers in December – Vanderbilt transfer Elijah McAllister, four-star freshman Keldric Faulk and three-star freshman Brenton Williams. 

Jalen McLeod (Appalachian State)
Outside Linebacker, 6-1, 230
Friendship Collegiate Academy; Washington, D.C.