Breaking down what Auburn football gained, lost in the transfer portal this offseason

MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. — Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze has totally revamped his roster this offseason.

Since getting hired in November, the Tigers have brought in a whopping 20 transfers, a haul good enough to earn them the No. 3 portal class in the country, according to 247Sports. The only two programs with a class rated higher are LSU and Colorado, as new coach Deion Sanders has added an unprecedented 50 transfers. Auburn does, however, have the most four-star transfers in the nation with 11. LSU has eight. Colorado has five.

On the other end, the Tigers lost 18 transfers, though the production gained far outweighs what went out the door. Here's a breakdown of the numbers behind what Freeze has done through the portal this offseason.

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Auburn football's new-look receivers

It took until the spring portal period, but Auburn's wide receiver room got a makeover.

The position was one in which the Tigers had the most attrition — Dazalin Worsham (UAB), Ze'Vian Capers (Western Kentucky), Tar'Varish Dawson (Colorado) and Landen King (Utah) all left — but also the one with the most new faces. Auburn brought in Nick Mardner from Cincinnati in December and added three WRs —Jyaire Shorter from North Texas, Shane Hooks from Jackson State and Caleb Burton III from Ohio State — in May.

In terms of production gained and lost, Auburn's departures are taking with them 23 career receptions for 268 yards and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, the additions come to the Plains with a combined 253 receptions for 4,390 yards and 49 scores. A stark difference.

Of course, each of the new receivers are coming from a perceived lower level of competition than the SEC, but the staggering disparity in production can't be overlooked.

Offensive line reconstruction

With Avery Jones (East Carolina), Dillon Wade (Tulsa), Gunner Britton (Western Kentucky) and Jaden Muskrat (Tulsa) added this offseason, the Tigers may have four new starters on the offensive line. Wade at left tackle, Jones at center and Britton at right tackle were locks at their positions during spring practice, and even though Muskrat played tackle with the Golden Hurricane, Freeze said he has the versatility to play inside if needed: "He can do both, which is why he was that high for us," Freeze said May 10.

Two offensive linemen hit the portal for Auburn in Keinondre Jones and Colby Smith. Jones played 334 offensive snaps last year, per Pro Football Focus. Smith's numbers aren't available, but he didn't see the field until late in the season — his first playing time came against Western Kentucky in AU's penultimate game.

Similar to wide receiver, the numbers here are jarring. The four newcomers combined for 3,552 snaps on the offensive line a season ago, with Britton's 1,036 leading the way.

Front seven the focus for Auburn's defense

Aside from special teams, the only position group Auburn didn't add a transfer to this offseason was at defensive back. There wasn't much movement in the other direction, either, as Craig McDonald was the only DB to leave.

Amongst the front seven, though? The Tigers made significant changes. At defensive line, jack and linebacker, Auburn lost eight players and added nine. The departures have combined career stats of 38 total tackles, three tackles for loss, a pass deflection and a forced fumble.

As has been the trend, Auburn's additions have produced much more at the schools they're coming from. The group of nine has a collective 707 total tackles, 65.5 tackles for loss, 17 pass deflections and nine forced fumbles.

Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn football: What Tigers gained, lost in the transfer portal