Xavier Atkins Releases Statement After Auburn Dismissal

Going into Tuesday morning, the Auburn Tigers made a pivotal move regarding one of their best players on the roster for the 2026 season: linebacker Xavier Atkins. 

After being suspended from the team at the beginning of last week, reports were revealed to begin the day that Atkins was no longer with the team, being removed from the Tigers’ online roster quickly. The junior standout missed the team’s stunning win over No. 1 Georgia as well. 

Shortly after the announcement, Atkins took to social media to release a statement. 

“I have nothing but respect [for] Auburn University and will continue to support my teammates this season,” he said. “My focus is on my health, my family, and on finishing up the academic semester strong, and I’ll be entering the transfer portal at the appropriate time.”

An LSU transfer from the 2025 offseason, Atkins lit the Tigers on fire defensively in his first year with defensive coordinator DJ Durkin. He led the SEC in tackles for loss in that season with 17.0, and the Auburn record for an inside linebacker, while also adding 9.0 sacks on the year. 

The numbers were enough to grant the sophomore a First Team All-SEC honor after the season, also picking up multiple Second Team All-America honors. So, when he entered his junior year in 2026, he had plenty of traction to be one of the top linebackers in the 2027 NFL Draft pool. 

In the offseason, Atkins also had excitement about getting to face his former team, LSU, which will take place at Jordan-Hare Stadium this Saturday. Auburn will look to take that momentum gained from last weekend and use it in a manner to fuel the group. However, the former Bayou Bengal won’t be with them on the field. 

As I said before, Melendez is expected to be the key linebacker for Durkin’s group now, and he’s already delivered in the new role. He leads the team in total tackles (53) and sacks (4) while also recording an interception on Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton in last weekend’s win. 

Names like Bryce Deas and De’Marcus Riddick will see heightened roles as well. Deas was second on the team in tackles between the hedges with eight, all being by himself. Riddick had two tackles. 

However, the loss means that the Tigers will have to have a new identity on defense, losing a player who had 26 tackles, three sacks and an interception in five games. Based on last week’s performance, though, head coach Alex Golesh should have some answers that he’s happy with.