The Auburn football loaded up on new talent over the course of the offseason and hopes that those players will help lead the team to success in its 2024 campaign.
One of those new faces is defensive back [autotag]Jerrin Thompson[/autotag], who is bringing a lot to the program after spending the last four years at Texas.
Being a part of the secondary, Thompson has skills that everyone with the team is impressed by, including his ability to communicate and lead by example.
“I take pride in that,” Thompson said. “That’s one thing that I feel like is my strength, is my instincts and my ability to communicate and make guys less stressed around me. I take a lot of pride in it. So just knowing that, just communicating and knowing my teammates is one thing I’m big on and how I operate.”
With a young secondary including players like [autotag]Caleb Wooden[/autotag] and [autotag]Sylvester Smith[/autotag], Thompson is trying to help others out when they need it while also playing his best.
He admits that while wealth of experience is a concern, the talent level is there.
“Yeah, we got a lot of talent. I have not been around a secondary this young, but this talented,” Thompson said. “We got a lot of guys who are hungry. Hungry like, we got guys out here competing. We don’t know who’s gonna play. That’s how it is. It’s out there. Like I said, running day five, we’re still just stacking days.”
While with the Longhorns, Thompson reeled in 176 total tackles and five interceptions, including one at Alabama in 2023.
Thompson now looks to make a strong impact on the Plains in 2024, trying to help build the Auburn defense into a force to be reckoned with.
The Tigers open the season on Aug. 31 when they take on the Alabama A&M Bulldogs at 6:30 p.m. CST in Jordan-Hare Stadium.