Auburn football: 3 biggest offseason questions facing Bryan Harsin’s Tigers in 2021
By John Buhler
2. Who becomes a defensive star under new coordinator Derek Mason?
With Derek Mason coming over from the Vanderbilt Commodores to coach the Auburn defense, it will be a departure from what the Tigers experience under former defensive coordinator Kevin Steele. Under Steele, Auburn thrived in the trenches and in the pass rush. While Mason is a sound defensive mind too, look for his defense to be led by the secondary, his position group of strength.
Mason is a former cornerback himself and a defensive backs coach, parlaying that into the Stanford defensive coordinator role before taking over in Nashville for James Franklin in 2014. While competition will be key in all areas of this football team, the one position group Auburn could be spectacular in right away is the secondary. Mason already has one star to work with.
That star playmaker is safety Smoke Monday. Though he has one of the coolest names in the SEC, he is also one of the finest defensive backs the Power 5 conference has to offer. He could have gone pro, but returns for his senior season down on The Plains to play for Harsin and Mason. If it all goes according to plan, he has a fantastic opportunity to be First-Team All-SEC in 2021.
Other players to keep an eye on in the back-end of Auburn’s 2021 defense include cornerbacks Roger McCreary and Jaylin Simpson. Chris Thompson Jr. probably slots in as the other safety next to Monday. We may also want to keep an eye on true freshman Ahmari Harvey. He is one of the best players Auburn landed this past recruiting cycle and he did enroll early out of high school.