The action of transferring to a new program has almost become more routine than not as the 2026 college football season gets underway.
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For whatever reason it may be, players are always looking for new beginnings and looking to make their marks in a new uniform. Buddy Mathis is one example of that scenario this season, as he trades out the colors of another SEC school for the orange and blue at Auburn.
Heading into his sophomore season, Mathis has made his way to the Plains by way of LSU, where he appeared in just seven games during his freshman season and recorded nine total tackles.
Now playing under Alex Golesh and his staff at Auburn have helped him develop his game, so much so that Mathis feels like a newer and better player since the spring.
“From the spring, I definitely feel like I’ve gotten better technical wise, like with my technique, getting in shape and stuff,” Mathis said. “Coach Vontrell and Coach Scott have done a very good job of coaching us, pushing us hard, making us get out the stack, just building up our endurance for what’s to come.”
The praise that Mathis gives defensive line coach Vontrell King-Williams is high, noting how much he pours into the group as a whole.
King-Williams has been proud of the way that Mathis has worked over the course of this preseason camp, and while he knows there is work still to be done, Mathis is completing the challenges that have been sent to him.
“The big thing for (Buddy) is, he played significant college snaps when he was over at LSU,” King-Williams said. “The biggest thing for him was getting to know the playbook. You’ve got to look at him and he was still a freshman last year. He played a bunch of snaps, but he was still a freshman last year… He’s doing a really good job now at picking it up and meeting the challenges we’re setting for him.”
Mathis believes in King-Williams as well because of his results as a coach, as the Tigers finished top six in both sacks and tackles for loss in 2025. In addition, Auburn allowed its lowest yards per carry and rushing yards per game since 2003 at 2.86 and 99.3, respectively, and its fewest yards per game overall since 2017 at 329.2.
“Last year when I played, I played football but I didn’t have the best technique,” Mathis said. “Coming here, seeing what Coach Vontrell has put out, what he’s put out into the league and into college, I feel like he was the best person I could know to make my skills better.”
At the end of the day, Mathis knows all that King-Williams has helped him with will benefit both him and the defensive line unit in the long run.
The technique translates to the players being better physically, and in the SEC, physicality is a necessity, not just a benefit.
“Nobody in this league is soft,” Mathis said. “We’re going to go against good o-lines, even better ones week in and week out. He’s doing what he’s supposed to do. We don’t expect nothing less of him. He wants us to be the best version of ourselves and go out and dominate every Saturday.”
Auburn Undercover is an independent Auburn sports media company covering Auburn athletics, recruiting and insider news.
