AUBURN — Outside of receiver, there aren't many starting spots on Auburn football that'll be manned by a newcomer.

Mississippi State transfer Percy Lewis is set to start at left tackle, and the interior of the defensive line − defensive tackle and nose tackle − will potentially feature a couple transfers as starters, whether that's Philip Blidi (Indiana), Trill Carter (Texas), Gage Keys (Kansas) or Isaiah Raikes (USC).

And then there's Texas transfer Jerrin Thompson, a veteran safety who spent four seasons with the Longhorns and appeared in 49 games from 2020-23. He racked up 176 tackles, 18 pass deflections and five interceptions in his time at Texas, including three tackles in the semifinals of the College Football Playoff last season.

Thompson didn't arrive to Auburn cemented as a starting safety, but he quickly earned that role during spring practices and hasn't looked back since.

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"Practice wise, it’s pretty much the same," Thompson said of the difference between Auburn and Texas. "I’m used to the two-spot structure. Practice has been pretty much the same, but the energy has been a little different. We’re competing real well on both sides of the ball. We’re going good. First five days of camp have been really well, lots of production going on. We’re getting after it. Still stacking our days."

The addition of Thompson has been beneficial in multiple ways for the Tigers. Not only has he locked down a starting job in a secondary that lost four starters this offseason, but he's taken on a responsibility of being another coach on the field.

During practices, Thompson isn't shy in getting on the youth and using his experience to teach them what he knows.

"His voice translates through the whole group," expected starting nickel cornerback Champ Anthony said. "Well, you could say DBs, but really the whole team from the DB aspect, just seeing him out there calling out motions and pre-snap. We're all learning how to do it now because he's played four years, he's played four years at a top program and just seeing how he moves and how he talks. Now, we're all learning how to talk and move like that. So even when he's not on the field, we all talk and move the same way."

Sophomore CB Kayin Lee added of Thompson: "Very vocal guy. He’s going to talk to you every single play and make sure you know what you’ve got and make sure you know what the defense got. He’s just going to communicate until the whistle blows and he’s going to give it his all."

One of the biggest position battles going on during preseason practices is for the starting safety spot next to Thompson. It looks to be a two-man race between junior Caleb Wooden and redshirt freshman Sylvester Smith. Wooden has played 266 defensive snaps over his collegiate career, and Smith had just 29 live reps last season.

With that inexperience between the two, having someone like Thompson should serve them both well.

"I take pride in that," Thompson said of being vocal. "One thing that I feel like my strength is my instincts and my ability to communicate and make guys less stressed around me. I take a lot of pride in that. So just knowing that, communicating and knowing my teammates is one thing I’m big on and how I operate."

Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rich_silva18.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn football: How 4 years at Texas are helping Jerrin Thompson