Auburn wide receiver Landen King has entered the transfer portal, according to a social media post from the sophomore. He was followed by freshman cornerback A.D. Diamond and preceded by defensive lineman Zykevious Walker.
King was in his second year with the program, initially listed as a tight end during his freshman year but making the transfer to wide receiver going into his junior year. In his post to Twitter, King said he would enter the transfer portal on Dec. 5 with three years of eligibility remaining.
The NCAA Board of Governors adopted rule changes that defined "windows" for transferring: a 45-day period after "championship selections" and then a second window from May 1-15. There are also stipulations for programs with head coaching changes, but that was not King's situation.
In his 2021 campaign, King logged two catches against Georgia for 31 yards. Against Arkansas, he had two more for an additional 23 yards. Most notably, he caught a five-yard touchdown pass from quarterback T.J. Finley in the first overtime of the Iron Bowl to keep Auburn in the game.
At the end of his freshman year, King totaled five receptions for 59 yards and one touchdown, for an average of 11.80 yards per reception. In 2022, King had one reception for 24 yards when the Tigers lost to Penn State on Sept. 27.
Chipping away at Auburn's 2021 recruiting class further, Diamond was removed from the Auburn football roster on Tuesday night. The Mobile, Alabama native never appeared in a game this season after redshirting in 2021. He was a former three-star recruit out of high school.
According to Christian Clemente of 247Sports, half of Auburn's 2021 18-man signing class have now hit the transfer portal with the exit of Diamond.
This came after head coach Bryan Harsin announced in his weekly press conference on Monday that Walker was no longer with the team. The junior was a four-star defensive lineman, originally from Georgia.
In three seasons at Auburn, Walker had 20 total tackles through 11 games. The only game he participated in this season was against Georgia, where he logged no stats. Harsin said that Walker left the program after that loss.
Walker was the first Tiger to officially hit the transfer portal this season, with King's decision coming the next day. Just hours after each of their decisions, each player, along with Diamond, was no longer listed on the 2022 roster on the team's official website.
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Callie Stanford, junior in communications, is the sports editor at the Auburn Plainsman. Currently a junior, she has been with The Plainsman since January 2021.
Twitter: @Stanford1Callie
