Auburn Tigers head football coach Hugh Freeze addressed the media earlier this week, discussing various topics, including the impact of injuries on the team.
Former 4-star recruit Tyler Scott, a top-five player in Auburn’s 2023 class, will miss the entire 2024 season due to a torn ACL. “Unfortunately, we lost Tyler Scott for the year with an ACL in workouts,” said Freeze. “Other than that, I think we are pretty good.”
Scott, who redshirted in 2023, was expected to compete for starting snaps this year after appearing in four games last season. Although he initially entered the transfer portal in the spring, he decided to stay at Auburn.
The Tigers also lost second-year cornerback Colton Hood to Colorado during the spring portal. Hood had shown promise in practice and was expected to be a significant part of the defense.
With Auburn’s secondary depth being tested, Alabama transfer Antonio Kite may need to step up. Veterans Kayin Lee and Keionte Scott are expected to start at the cornerback positions.
Kicker Alex McPherson, who was perfect last season, is dealing with a health issue. Freeze explained, “Alex is battling an issue; it’s a weird issue and I really don’t want to go into that.
I think he will be okay. It’s not an injury, he is battling a health issue that is taking a while to get diagnosed. It has to do with his gastrointestinal and I think they are on the path to being on the right track.”
McPherson, ranked as the #1 kicker in the 2022 class, is considered one of the best returning kickers in college football.
Coach Freeze also mentioned that offensive lineman Tate Johnson will undergo a minor surgery, but it’s not expected to result in missed time for fall camp.
