Florida football adds another SEC transfer through the portal

Florida football once again strengthened its roster through the NCAA Transfer Portal when it landed former Auburn defensive lineman Tyrone Truesdell on Monday, according to Rivals’ Nick de la Torre.

Truesdell, a fifth-year graduate student taking advantage of the free year of eligibility the NCAA handed out due to COVID-19 last season, will be eligible immediately under the new one-time transfer rule ratified this April.

The 6-foot-2, 326-pound defensive tackle played 44 games across his four years at Auburn, never playing in less than nine games. He totaled 67 total tackles, 30 solo tackles, nine tackles for loss, three sacks, two fumble recoveries and a pass deflection. He was a three-star recruit out of high school and the 36th-best defensive tackle prospect in the class of 2017, according to 247Sports.

A grand majority of Truesdell’s production came in the past two years, when he took over the starting role on the interior of Auburn’s defensive line. Over 23 games in the previous two seasons, he amassed 53 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and three sacks.

All of Truesdell’s career highs came during the 13-game 2019 season, when he registered 31 total tackles, five tackles for loss and all three of his career sacks. He offered his best performance against Kent State in 2019 when he recorded two tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.

Now, the Georgia native will occupy the middle of Florida’s defensive line. Although he enters the program less than a week ahead of game one, he offers SEC experience few other defensive lineman on Florida’s roster can match, so he will likely compete for playing time. He’ll fit in to a defensive tackle room currently boasting sophomore standout Gervon Dexter, Penn State transfer Antonio Valentino and fellow Auburn transfer Daquan Newkirk and 

Contact Ryan Haley at rhaley@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter at @ryan_dhaley.

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