Former Auburn cornerback DJ James was selected with the No. 192nd overall pick by the Seattle Seahawks in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

He is the third Auburn player taken in this year’s draft and will be joining former Auburn defensive back Nehemiah Pritchett in Seattle.

James’ Auburn career ended in heartbreak. He was the cornerback covering Isaiah Bond on what in eastern Alabama will be the infamous 4th-and-31 Alabama touchdown where Auburn lost the 2023 Iron Bowl.

The play was devastating for James in the weeks immediately following. But he said he doesn’t want that play to define him. If anything, he said, it was motivation to make it into the NFL.

James developed into one of the SEC’s better cover cornerbacks as a whole after he transferred to Auburn from Oregon in 2021. James is from Mobile and initially picked to go to Oregon over Alabama out of high school at Spanish Fort. When then Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal took the job at Miami, James left and found a home at Auburn.

In two seasons at Auburn as a full-time starter, James had nearly 80 total tackles and three interceptions. He also defended 18 passes in two years at Auburn. His stats in his final two years at Auburn were more productive than his first three at Oregon combined.

James ran the ninth fastest 40-yard dash among cornerbacks at the NFL Combine with a time of 4.42 — after gaining weight on a pasta diet to meet weigh-in goals from NFL scouts.

Matt Cohen covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @Matt_Cohen_ or email him at [email protected]