Auburn football defensive lineman Jeffrey M'ba to enter the transfer portal

Auburn football is losing at least one defensive lineman to the portal.

Jeffrey M'ba, who committed and signed to the Tigers in December 2021 as the top-ranked junior college player in the country, announced via social media Thursday that he plans to enter the transfer portal.

"I am grateful to have been a part of the Auburn Tigers community," M'ba wrote in his post. "My time has taught me lessons that extend far beyond the football field. I want to give a heartfelt thank you to Coach (Bryan) Harsin for recruiting and giving me the opportunity to play at Auburn. Additionally, I want to thank the entire new Auburn staff for giving me the opportunity to play under their leadership."

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The 6-foot-6, 307-pound M'ba appeared in 10 games during his lone season on the Plains, totaling seven tackles and a sack in 2022.

"The time has come for me to enter the transfer portal and take the next step as a football player," M'ba said. "It's time for me to start the next chapter of life!"

M'ba, who went to Independence Community College in Kansas and is originally from Gabon, was not in the starting defense for Auburn at A-Day on Saturday. The trio of linemen with the first-team defense consisted of Jayson Jones at nose tackle, Justin Rogers at defensive tackle and Marcus Harris at defensive end.

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

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn football: Jeffrey M'ba to enter transfer portal