Tag: Stephen Sings

Former Auburn LB finds new home on West Coast

Former Auburn linebacker Wesley Steiner will get a fresh start far from home.

[autotag]Wesley Steiner[/autotag] arrived at Auburn in 2020 hoping to become one of the Tigers’ all-time greats at linebacker.

However, those dreams took a turn in 2023 when his production significantly dropped. Following the 2024 spring session, Steiner entered the transfer portal in hopes of finding a new home ahead of his final season of eligibility. On Saturday, Steiner revealed that he will be heading west to Pullman, Washington, where he will spend this season as a Washington State Cougar.

As a member of the 2020 recruiting class, Steiner signed with Auburn as a four-star linebacker that ranked No. 5 nationally and the No. 9 product from Georgia. It took several seasons for Steiner to make a mark, but he finally did in 2022 by appearing in all 12 games and making 46 total stops.

His production dipped in 2023 as his snaps dropped from 348 in 2022 to just 84 in 2023. As a result, he managed to record just 16 tackles in nine games.

His Auburn career ends with 86 total tackles, two going for a loss. Steiner becomes the 16th player from Auburn’s 2023 roster to find a new home. Players such as WR [autotag]Koy Moore[/autotag], EDGE [autotag]Stephen Sings[/autotag], and safety [autotag]Marquise Gilbert[/autotag] remain free agents.

Keldrick Faulk is set to make an impact this season

It will be difficult for defensive coordinator Ron Roberts to keep the true freshman off the field this fall.

After the departure of [autotag]Derick Hall[/autotag] and [autotag]Colby Wooden[/autotag] to the NFL, Hugh Freeze knew that he needed to bring in experienced players from the transfer portal to fill those roles.

He did so by snagging [autotag]Elijah McAllister[/autotag], [autotag]Stephen Sings[/autotag], and [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag]. There is zero doubt that their combined experience will be beneficial to the defense, but there is a true freshman in the mix that is poised to be a valuable player for the unit.

Freshman [autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag] almost went another direction with his recruitment, as he flipped to Auburn just before signing day. Since then, he has proven to be worthy of the flip. He has worked just as hard in the field as he has in the weight room, and it has caused defensive coordinator Ron Roberts to place him in a new spot.

“He played Jack most of the spring. A lot of our four-down stuff, it’s the same thing,” Roberts said. “So he was doing it half the dag-gum time, so we moved him to end. He’s 290 pounds by the summertime, so he’s kind of filled that spot. He’s in there fighting for the job. I don’t know how it’s going to pan out the next couple of weeks, but he’s going to be an impact player for us this season.”

That says plenty about what kind of player Faulk can be. Sure, the Tigers’ depth chart is filled with plenty of transfers, but Faulk’s quick development could be a great sign of what is to come from the coaching staff.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1364]

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__

Jersey numbers for spring transfers unveiled

Here’s a look at what number each of Auburn’s eight spring transfers will wear this fall.

After finding success in the first window of the transfer portal window, [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and his staff continued to work to fill needs for their team in the spring portion.

As part of their spring transfer haul, Auburn gained support at wide receiver, jack linebacker, offensive line, and quarterback. [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] headlines the spring additions, as Freeze now has a worthy quarterback to compete with [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] for the starting QB1 job.

Whoever wins the quarterback battle will also have more options to throw to thanks to the addition of three wide receivers in [autotag]Shane Hooks[/autotag], [autotag]Jyaire Shorter[/autotag], and [autotag]Caleb Burton[/autotag].

Defensively, the biggest position Auburn needed to fill was JACK linebacker. In the winter window, Auburn added [autotag]Elijah McAllister[/autotag] from Vanderbilt to build depth. However, Dylan Brooks elected to leave the program, which left more room to fill. The Tigers received assistance, however, by landing [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] from Appalachian State and [autotag]Stephen Sings[/autotag] from Liberty.

At linebacker, Auburn gains [autotag]Larry Nixon III[/autotag]. Nixon was the second-leading tackler at North Texas last season with 105 total stops and was named first-team All-Conference USA.

RELATED: Ranking Auburn’s 2023 transfers by PFF grade

All eight transfers are now on campus and have received their jersey numbers for the upcoming season. Here’s a look at what number each spring transfer will wear this upcoming season.

No.  Name
1 Payton Thorne, QB
10 Caleb Burton, WR
11 Shane Hooks, WR
14 Jyaire Shorter, WR
16 Stephen Sings V, JACK
30 Larry Nixon III, LB
35 Jalen McLeod, JACK
63 Jaden Muskrat, OL

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1364]

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__