Auburn starting nickel Keionte Scott undergoes surgery, out indefinitely
AUBURN — The injury news for Auburn football wasn’t good on Monday, as starting nickel Keionte Scott is out indefinitely according to head coach Hugh Freeze.
Scott left the Samford game in the first quarter with an undisclosed injury and never returned. Freeze said on Monday that Scott will have surgery and miss games moving forward
“Unfortunately, Keionte did not get a good report,” Freeze said. “That hurts us a lot. He’s our leader back there. It hasn’t been a good year for us with injuries. Our prayers are with him for a quick healing for sure. We’ll be without him for considerable time.”
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Scott had 10 tackles in three games, with a quarterback hurry that forced a pick-six by Jaylin Simpson against UMass.
In Ron Roberts‘ defense, Scott’s role from the nickel was an important one, specifically when it comes to blitzing the quarterback.
“It’s just fun going against some good quarterbacks being able to apply that pressure at times,” Scott said earlier this year. “He won’t have time to sit back there and pick apart our defense, so just being able to apply that pressure and everybody being able to get home is fun.”
In Keionte Scott’s absence, Freeze and Roberts will have decisions to make. Expect Donovan Kaufman to start at nickel in place of Scott. Caleb Wooden played a large number of snaps against Samford after Scott’s departure, tallying six tackles. Wooden may stay at nickel, but another option is JD Rhym to play nickel behind Kaufman and keep Wooden at safety.
“We’re not sure yet what that looks like,” Freeze said.
It’s been a tough first three games for Auburn in the injury department.
Linebacker Austin Keys had surgery on his thumb after the opener against UMass.
In addition to Keys and Scott being out, here’s a list of other players that have been injured and missed games or snaps:
Donovan Kaufman
Nehemiah Pritchett
Jalen McLeod
JD Rhym
Nick Mardner
Ja’Varrius Johnson
Kam Stutts
Izavion Miller
Larry Nixon III
