Tigers Hiring Former SEC West Rival's Assistant

24/7 Sports’ Matt Zenit reported on Thursday that the Auburn Tigers have made an addition to their coaching staff.

Auburn Tigers head coach Hugh Freeze / Jake Crandall / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Auburn Tigers are expected to hire former Texas A&M Aggies defensive backs coach T.J. Rushing, per 24/7 Sports’ Matt Zenitz. Auburn is reportedly hiring Rushing as a special assistant. 

Auburn is expected to hire former Texas A&M defensive backs coach TJ Rushing as a special assistant, a source tells @247sports.

Rushing, an ex-NFL defensive back and Super Bowl champion with the Indianapolis Colts, helped A&M rank No. 1 nationally in pass defense in 2022.… pic.twitter.com/rm7fe6GsO3

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) June 20, 2024

The 41-year-old coach had been with Texas A&M under Jimbo Fisher since 2020. He was previously the defensive backs coach at Memphis and Arizona State. 

With the Aggies replacing Fisher with Duke’s Mike Elko this offseason, Rushing’s services had become available. 

Under Rushing in 2022, Texas A&M finished first in all of college football in pass defense. The Aggies allowed just 156.2 passing yards per game that season. The Texas A&M pass defense took a step back in 2023 (188.3 total passing yards per game), however, they were still 21st in the nation. 

Auburn’s pass defense ranked 30th in the country in 2023 and fourth in the SEC. While those rankings were an improvement from prior seasons, head coach Hugh Freeze still elected for changes to the defensive staff ahead of his second season.

In addition to hiring Rushing, Auburn brought on D.J. Durkin and Charles Kelly to be co-defensive coordinators. Like Rushing, Durkin is also coming from Fisher’s final staff at A&M. 

Auburn hiring former Texas A&M defensive coaches makes a lot of sense. The Aggies held the Tigers to 10 points and 56 passing yards at Kyle Field last season.

Auburn finished 6-7 (3-5) in 2023, including a loss to Maryland in the Music City Bowl. Three of those losses were one-score games to ranked, in-conference opponents. 

That was the difference between a losing season and competing for a spot in the SEC Championship Game.

With no divisions and two more top programs joining the conference, it will only get tougher for Auburn next season. Hiring Rushing could help the Tigers not just keep up, but return to being a force.