The second spring camp of the Hugh Freeze era at Auburn is just around the corner as it’s set to get underway Feb. 27.

The Tigers will then proceed to hold 13 spring practices in preparation of Auburn’s spring game — also known as A-Day — which is set to be played on April 6 at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Before spring practices get underway, AL.com will take a position-by-position look at the Tigers’ roster, now taking a look at Auburn’s linebackers.

Who did the Tigers lose in the linebacker room?

Auburn’s linebacker room will only be losing a pair of linebackers as it transitions into the spring as Larry Nixon III ran out of eligibility after the 2023 season and Cam Riley decided to enter the transfer portal in January.

Of the two, Nixon’s departure stings the most as he was the Tigers’ second leading tackler last fall having tallied 51 total tackles.

Meanwhile, Riley logged 32 tackles during his junior campaign in 2023.

Who are the Tigers returning in the linebacker room?

Heading into the spring, Auburn’s linebacker room looks to be in good shape as it returns four veterans in Eugene Asante, Austin Keys, Wesley Steiner and Jake Levant. All together, that quartet combined for 135 total tackles with Asante and Keys leading the charge.

Fortunately for Auburn, after he broke out in 2023 with a team-leading 86 total tackles, Asante announced in December that he’d be returning for his final season.

“I’m really glad that people like Keionte (Scott) and Eugene (Asante) are coming back to help lead us,” Freeze said. “I think they’ll be great for these young kids as two great leaders and captain-material guys that can help set the culture for our defense next year, so thrilled that they’re back.”

The return of Keys is also notable as the former Ole Miss transfer wasn’t able to get an entire season under his belt last fall after dealing with a thumb injury, which forced him to miss five games. Appearing in the other eight games, Keys managed to log 30 total tackles.

“You can tell he’s got an SEC build already,” Auburn linebacker coach Josh Aldridge said of Keys last August. “And then on top of that you can tell he knows how to practice like an SEC player. I’m really enjoying his tenacity. He’s not played perfect by any means, but you can tell he understands the physicality it takes to play in this conference. That’s what I like about Austin.”

Steiner also played in all 13 games last season, primarily as a rotational piece, while Levant just saw action in two games.

Rising sophomore Robert Woodyard Jr. also returns to Auburn’s linebacker room after appearing in three games in 2023.

Who did the Tigers add to the linebacker room?

Auburn wasn’t messing around when it came to improving its linebacker room in the offseason.

To get things going, the Tigers secured a trio of linebacker signees during the early signing period as 4-star Demarcus Riddick, 4-star Joe Phillips and 3-star DJ Barber all signed their letters of intent on Dec. 20 and enrolled early, allowing them to practice with Auburn as it prepped for the Music City Bowl.

“They come in and they’re hungry. You can tell they’re hungry. They want to go out there and perform,” Asante said of the three freshmen. “They have so much talent. Each one of them is showing so many new things on film.”

Meanwhile, in a surprise announcement during his early signing day press conference, Freeze revealed that he and the Tigers had also secured veteran Duke transfer Dorian Mausi, who previously spent four seasons with the Blue Devils.

During the 2023 season, Mausi recorded 61 total tackles for the Blue Devils.

“We have Dorian Mausi from Duke at linebacker, that’s a very experienced guy that has signed with us also,” Freeze said during his press conference on Dec. 20. So we’re steadily building.”