AUBURN — A well-liked former Auburn football player is leaving the Plains for a promotion.

Trovon Reed, who has been the director of football and recruiting relations for the Tigers since 2022 and a player relations coordinator before that, has joined UCF's staff as a cornerbacks coach, Knights coach Gus Malzahn announced Friday afternoon. Reed played under Malzahn at Auburn from 2013-14, helping the Tigers to an appearance in the 2014 BCS National Championship.

Malzahn was also Reed's offensive coordinator for his freshman and sophomore seasons with the Tigers. Reed was a five-star recruit in the Class of 2010 out of Thibodaux High School in Louisiana, rated by the 247Sports Composite as the No. 25 player in the country.

Reed has become a fixture in the recruiting scene since he returned to the Tigers, most recently helping coach Hugh Freeze secure the No. 8 haul in the Class of 2024. Five-star signee Perry Thompson reacted to Reed's promotion on social media: "Love to see it coach," Thompson wrote, along with a heart emoji.

The 33-year-old Reed spent five seasons at Auburn before enjoying a four-year NFL career that saw him make six appearances. He picked off then-Carolina Panthers quarterback and former teammate Cam Newton in Week 13 of the 2016 season.

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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: Trovon Reed leaving Auburn football, joining Gus Malzahn at UCF