The Arkansas State Game September 4, 2010 Features 4-5 Today in Jordan-Hare: Auburn vs. Arkansas State 8-9 Anders Cover Story: Zac Etheridge 13 A Word from Auburn s Director of Athletics Jay Jacobs 57 Step Back: Auburn vs. Arkansas State, 2006 69 Facilities Update 72 Senior Profile: Demond Washington 113 Senior Q&A: Aairon Savage 116-117 Through the Lens (pictorial) 155 University News: All Auburn, All Orange Makes a Statement 163 Trooper Taylor Can t Lose: Trooper vs. Tim Hudson 185 Olympic Sport Q&A: Soccer 189 Know Your NewB: Cameron Newton Gameday Activities In and Around the Stadium 10:00 a.m. Auburn Arena Ticket Office opens for Will Call and Sales (Southeast Arena) Auburn Arena Fan Shop opens (North Arena) 2:00 p.m. Coca-Cola Tiger Fan Fest opens (Coliseum Lawn) 3:30 p.m. Suites open 3:55 p.m. Tiger Walk Tiger Tailgate at Plainsman Park opens (Right Field Patio) 4:00 p.m. Public Gates/ Student Gates open 4:25 p.m. Spirit March Stadium Box Office opens (Sales) New for 2010 - Will Call remains at the Auburn Arena Ticket Office through halftime 4:30 p.m. Pep Rally (Corner of Heisman and Donahue) Pre-Game 5:47 p.m. Tiger Paws/Cheerleaders Recognition 5:51 p.m. Flight of the Eagle 5:55 p.m. Band Pre-Game Show 6:03 p.m. AU Rev-Up Video 6:05 p.m. AU takes the field 6:08 p.m. Kickoff Halftime Auburn University Marching Band War Eagle Girls and Plainsmen Recognition
AUBURN FOOTBALL W E B E L I E V E I N A U B U R N TOday in Jordan-Hare SCOUTING ARKANSAS STATE By ASU Media Relations THE RED WOLVES The Red Wolves return 50 lettermen (24 offense/24 defense/2 special teams), including Bryan Hall, the Sun Belt Conference s 2010 Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, and fellow preseason all-conference choices Derek Newton (Sr., OL) and Demario Davis (Jr., LB). The Red Wolves are picked to finish third in the 2010 Sun Belt Conference race according to the league s preseason coaches poll, released July 19 as part of the Sun Belt Conference Media Days. HEAD COACH STEVE ROBERTS Arkansas State head coach Steve Roberts enters his ninth year at Arkansas State after leading the Red Wolves to the 2005 Sun Belt Conference Championship and to bowl eligible seasons three of the last five years. During his first eight seasons as the Red Wolves head coach, he guided ASU to 41 wins for its most over an eight-year span at the school since 1985-1992. Roberts was named the 2005 Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year. Under Roberts, the Red Wolves have had 70 All-Sun Belt Conference selections, a Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year, SBC Offensive Player of the Year, two SBC Defensive Players of the Year and an SBC Newcomer of the Year. ROBERTS CLIMBING VICTORIES LADDER Through his first eight seasons as the Red Wolves head coach, Steve Roberts already has the fifth most victories among ASU s 26 all-time head coaches with 41 wins. Larry Lacewell (1979-89) holds the record for victories with 69 and is followed by Bennie Ellender (1963-70) with 52 wins, Bill Davidson (1971-78) with 51 and Forrest England (1946-53) with 49. A-STATE vs. THE SEC The Auburn game will mark the fourth season out of the last five that ASU has played an SEC opponent, also catching Alabama in 2008, Tennessee in 2007 and Auburn in 2006. It will also be ASU s 50th alltime meeting with a current member of the Southeastern Conference. Arkansas State holds a 1-46-3 record all-time against current members of the Southeastern Conference. ASU s lone victory over a current SEC member came 10-0 in 1915 over Ole Miss and it also tied the Rebels twice. ASU has played Ole Miss 23 times, more than any other current SEC member. In addition to Alabama (0-2), Auburn (0-1), Tennessee (0-1) and Ole Miss (1-20-2), ASU has also played Florida (0-2), Georgia (0-2), LSU (0-3) and Mississippi State (0-15-1). The Red Wolves are playing an SEC opponent for the eighth time under head coach Steve Roberts. 96th SEASON SET TO BEGIN Arkansas State will kickoff its 96th season of football Saturday. ASU holds a 412-443-37 record since the inaugural 1911 season and has played in seven bowl games. A-State did not field a football team from 1942-44 due to World War II. ASU also didn t have a team in 1918 as World War I was ending. SEASON OPENERS The Red Wolves have won three of their last four season openers, including the last two in a row. A-State defeated Mississippi Valley State 61-0 to start last season, Texas A&M 18-14 in 2008 and Army 14-6 in 2006. The only setback in season openers over the last four years came to then-ranked No. 4 Texas. A-State dropped a tough 21-13 decision to the Longhorns in that game. ASU is 45-44-6 all-time in season openers. STARTING ON THE ROAD While Arkansas State played a home game to open the 2006 and 2009 seasons, the Red Wolves will start with a true road game for the sixth time in nine seasons under head coach Steve Roberts. TEAM CAPTAINS ASU s senior class will alternate throughout the year as team captains. The team will vote on permanent captains at the end of the year. Bryan Hall ARKANSAS STATE (0-0) Date Opponent score/time Sept. 4 at #22/23 Auburn [FSN] 6 pm Sept. 11 at La.-Lafayette [Sun Belt Net] 2:30 pm Sept. 18 LA.-MONROE [Sun Belt Net] 7 pm Sept. 25 at Troy [Troy/ISP Net] 6 pm Oct. 2 LOUISVILLE 6 pm Oct. 9 at North Texas 6 pm Oct. 16 at Indiana 11 am Oct. 23 FLORIDA ATLANTIC [Sun Belt Net] 12 pm Nov. 2 MIDDLE TENNESSEE [ESPN2] 6 pm Nov. 13 WESTERN KENTUCKY 2 pm Nov. 20 at Navy [CBS College Sports] 4 pm Nov. 27 at Florida International TBA All times Central Head Coach Steve Roberts (Ouachita Baptist, 1987) Arkansas State Record...41-55 (9th year) vs. Auburn...0-1 Overall Record... 90-88-1 (17th year) vs. Auburn...0-1 Returning Statistical leaders (2009 Statistics) RUSHING YARDS Ryan Aplin... 253 Derek Lawson... 244 PASSING YARDS Ryan Aplin... 889 RECEPTIONS Taylor Stockemer... 16 Kedric Murry... 7 TACKLES Demario Davis... 80 M.D. Jennings... 64 4 AUBURNTIGERS.COM
A N D L O V E I T! AUBURN TIGERS SCOUTING AUBURN By Brad Gust AUBURN IN OPENERS Auburn has a 90-25-2 record in seasonopening games. The Tigers have won four straight season openers after dropping three of their previous four. Auburn beat Louisiana Tech last year, 37-13, Louisiana-Monroe in 2008, 34-0, Kansas State in 2007, 23-13, and Washington State, 40-14, in 2006. The Tigers last loss in a season opener was a 23-14 decision against Georgia Tech in 2005. Auburn has won 19 of its last 24 season openers. OPENING DAY SUPERLATIVES Auburn has had numerous outstanding individual and team performances in seasonopening games. Bo Jackson s 290 rushing yards versus SW Louisiana in 1985 and Alexander Wright s 263 receiving yards in 1989 against Pacific are the best seasonopening performances by an SEC player. The Tigers 565 rushing yards and 695 yards of total offense against SW Louisiana in the 1985 opener are school single-game records. Chris Todd s 93-yard TD pass to Terrell Zachery last year vs. Louisiana Tech is the longest pass play in school history. IN THE POLLS For the seventh time in the last eight years, Auburn is nationally ranked to begin the season. The Tigers are ranked 22nd in the Associated Press preseason poll, and 23rd in the preseason USA Today Coaches poll. Auburn had a string of six straight seasons starting the year as a nationally-ranked squad snapped last year. EXPERIENCED O-LINE PAVES THE WAY Auburn has one of the most experienced if not one of the best offensive lines in the country, with four starters returning who have combined to make 109 career starts. Senior All-American and Outland Trophy candidate Lee Ziemba has started all 38 games at tackle since arriving as a true freshman, while center Ryan Pugh, a Rimington Trophy candidate, has made 32 starts since his true freshman season. Guards Mike Berry (21 starts) and Byron Isom (18 starts) round out the experienced group. Auburn s offensive line was ranked as the fifth-best OL unit in the country by Phil Steele and Lindy s in their preseason publications. INJURED DBs RETURN Auburn s secondary will be boosted this season by the return of three former starters who are returning from injuries. Senior Aairon Savage missed both the 2008 (knee) and 2009 (Achilles) seasons before being granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA in February. He started 11 games as a freshman in 2006 and was named to a pair of Freshman All-America teams, and has not played since the 2007 Iron Bowl. Junior safety Mike McNeil started all 12 games as a sophomore in 2008, finishing second on the team with 65 tackles, but missed all of 2009 after breaking his leg in the spring. Senior safety Zach Etheridge is Auburn s most experience player in the secondary, having started 33 consecutive games before suffering a season-ending neck injury last Halloween against Ole Miss. He returns as Auburn s top career tackler on the squad with 192 stops in the previous three seasons. HIGHLY TOUTED RECRUITING CLASS While Auburn s seniors will be leaned up heavily this season, another strong recruiting class will play a big role in the Tigers success. Auburn s 2010 recruiting class was ranked No. 4 in the nation by both ESPN.com/ Scouts, Inc., and Rivals.com and sixth by Scout.com. Seven members of the recruiting class were part of the ESPNU 150. Head Coach Gene Chizik (Florida, 1985) Auburn Record...8-5 (2nd year) vs. Arkansas State... First meeting Overall Record...13-24 (4th year) vs. Arkansas State... First meeting Returning Statistical leaders (2009 Statistics) RUSHING YARDS Onterio McCalebb... 565 Mario Fannin... 285 PASSING YARDS Neil Caudle... 170 RECEPTIONS Darvin Adams... 60 Mario Fannin... 42 TACKLES Josh Bynes... 104 Craig Stevens... 95 AUBURN (0-0) Date Opponent score/time Sept. 4 ARKANSAS STATE [FSN] 6 pm Sept. 9 at Mississippi State [ESPN] 6:30 pm Sept. 18 CLEMSON [ESPN/ESPN3D] 6 pm Sept. 25 SOUTH CAROLINA TBA Oct. 2 LOUISIANA-MONROE TBA Oct. 9 at Kentucky TBA Oct. 16 ARKANSAS TBA Oct. 23 LSU TBA Oct. 30 at Ole Miss TBA Nov. 6 CHATTANOOGA (HC) TBA Nov. 13 GEORGIA TBA Nov. 26 at Alabama [CBS] 1:30 pm All times Central Mike Berry is one of four senior starters on the Auburn offensive line. AUBURNTIGERS.COM 5
AUBURN FOOTBALL W E B E L I E V E I N A U B U R N Anders Cover Story By Mae Margaret Davis On the morning of Oct. 31, 2009, junior strong safety Zac Etheridge entered Jordan-Hare Stadium ready to take on a talented Ole Miss team for a fierce SEC Western Division matchup. With pregame preparations complete, Nova soared from the northwest corner of the stadium and the Tigers were ready for kickoff. Just minutes into the opening quarter, however, Etheridge made a play on Ole Miss running back Rodney Scott and simultaneously collided with teammate Antonio Coleman. Coleman got up and shook out the cobwebs, but Etheridge didn t move. Scott remained underneath Etheridge while the Auburn medical staff quickly rushed onto the field. For what seemed like hours, they continued to work on the motionless Etheridge until a stretcher was brought out and he was carted off the field. The Auburn faithful held their breaths until Etheridge raised one hand and gave a thumbsup signal before entering the tunnel. The crowd let out a collective sigh of relief and cheered for the sign of good news, but Etheridge was immediately taken to the hospital for more extensive examination. However, upon his arrival in the emergency room, Etheridge s first concern wasn t his broken neck. Instead of me getting the x-rays and all that, I was like Put me in the room so I can watch the Ole Miss game, Etheridge said. To expect anything less of this senior would be unthinkable. After the season-ending neck injury, the Troy, Ala., native was unsure if he would ever play football again. But now 10 months later, Etheridge has been medically cleared to play and is more than ready to get back to Jordan-Hare Stadium. I did, at one point, think that I wasn t going to play again, Etheridge said. Even though some days I went back to the doctor and all the test results were positive, a lot of the doctors still had the feeling that my neck wouldn t be able to take that pounding again from another hit. My teammates just kept me up every day. I just tried to go out there and work. My family kept telling me that everything was going to work out alright. I just put in the extra time and worked as hard as I could and let God do his work. That s the way I approached the whole situation. Etheridge has left no doubt in anyone s mind that he is ready to play in 2010. Senior defensive back Demond Washington is one of many who are happy to see Etheridge next to him on the field again. He came back from it and worked hard, Washington said. He came to work in the weight room and did a great job. We tried to keep him up while he was working and just talked about playing the game, but it was like he never lost a step. It s great having him back, not just as a player, but he s a great friend of mine. Etheridge credits his family and friends for being the reason he was able to bounce back and return for his senior year. Without family, I don t think I could have made it at all, Etheridge said. As a young man, watching my mom go through tough 8 AUBURNTIGERS.COM
A N D L O V E I T! AUBURN TIGERS Zac Etheridge ETHERIDGE S Career Defensive Stats YEAR G/GS TT UT AT TFL-YDS QBS-YDS FF/FR PD INT-YDS 2006 3/0 0 0 0 0.0-0 0.0-0 0/0 0 0-0 2007 12/12 65 39 26 1.5-7 0.5-6 2/1 5 0-0 2008 12/12 75 38 37 1.5-6 0.0-0 0/0 4 1-0 2009 9/9 52 35 17 3.5-11 0.0-0 2/1 1 0-0 Totals 36/33 192 112 80 6.5-24 0.5-6 4/2 10 1-0 times and do everything she could to support the family, it motivated me to go out there and just keep going and never give up. We talk about the Auburn Family every day. I experienced that throughout my career even before the injury. There is no other place I d rather be than Auburn and that s from the bottom of my heart. I don t regret one day of it because a lot of people other than my immediate family here kept me going, kept me positive. Turning toward this season, Etheridge is ready to look past the injury and fill his role as a defensive leader. He will do that with his friend and teammate Aairon Savage. Savage, a sixth-year senior defensive back from Albany, Ga., says the chance to return healthy in 2010 and help lead the team alongside Etheridge is indescribable. It s been a journey, a fun journey, especially because we re so close, Savage said. It makes it that much more fun to have the opportunity to be out there and to compete with a close friend. The communication is there and it s just something really special, it s kind of hard to explain. After sitting out the previous two seasons due to injury, Savage knows what it is like to have to work hard and persevere against the odds in order to return to the field. He says that he and Etheridge have played strong roles in motivating each other to be ready for the upcoming year. We ve been helping each other throughout the summer and throughout camp, Savage said. That s just the way for us to get not only the best out of each other, but the best out of the other 10 guys that are out there with us. The bottom line is hard work, perseverance and believing in a higher power. That s what has got us back to where we are. We re just so thankful for that. You re going to have tough times here, and the main thing is to keep pushing. Etheridge says that he and Savage, along with the rest of the seniors, are going to take full advantage of the privilege to play again and give their final season everything they have. I think we re just going to go out there and put the work in and be that vocal leader for the guys so that they know they can lean on me and Aairon and a couple of the other seniors, Etheridge said. They come at you, they ask you a question. They see how hard we work. That makes other guys want to be that guy that answers all the questions in the room and things like that. With a never-give-up attitude and a largerthan-life work ethic, it isn t surprising to hear Etheridge say that every time he steps onto the field, he remembers exactly who and what he is playing for. For me, you go out there and you play for something bigger than yourself, Etheridge said. It s not all about you. You re playing for this university and for your family and in everything that you do, you just try to do it bigger than yourself. AUBURNTIGERS.COM 9
AUBURN TIGERS A word from Jay Jacobs Auburn University Director of Athletics Tiger Walk. The flight of the eagle. The grand entrance of the Auburn University Marching Band. I ve been to games across the country, and none can match the gameday experience we enjoy at Auburn. On behalf of the Auburn Athletics Department, I want to welcome all of you to Jordan-Hare Stadium for the 2010 football season. I also want to thank you as the Auburn Family for the important role you play in making our gameday experience truly special. We have the best fans in the country, the best student section in the country and the best family atmosphere in the country thanks to your loyalty, energy and support. While we are certainly proud of our nationally renowned gameday experience, we are never complacent. One of our five strategic goals as a department is to grow and improve the gameday experience for football and all of our sports. I wanted to share a few things that we have done this year to continue to enhance the gameday experience. You will see the debut of our tunnel video at today s game before the team comes out prior to kickoff. While exciting videos that get the crowd revved up for the game are not new, we did for the first time allow our fans to vote on the song used in this year s video. We did that to let you be a part of the gameday experience. Renovations and improvements to Jordan-Hare Stadium continue to be part of our annual plan. Restrooms were remodeled on the upper level of the West side of the stadium and new televisions were installed prior to this season. Auburn Arena will be open on gameday, and fans can tour the Lovelace Hall of Honor, shop at the Team Store or purchase tickets at the Ticket Office s new location on the east side of the arena. A concession stand will also be open in the arena serving barbeque. Will Call is now located at Auburn Arena Ticket Office for the entire gameday, and the Ticket Office will be open for extended hours. There will be no price increases at Jordan-Hare Stadium concessions for the 2010 season, and more variety will be available at select concession stands. In addition, a new merchandise vendor will sell items at improved displays inside Jordan-Hare. A more restrictive smoking policy has been put into place this football season. While it will still be allowed in some areas, we have made an effort to further restrict smoking inside the stadium. We continue to focus on customer service training both for Auburn Athletics staff and for the Event Operations Group staff that work at gameday. We need and appreciate your feedback, and our hope is that you experience good customer service whether through your interaction with our ticket takers, ushers or concession stand workers. In closing, I want to encourage you to treat others as you would like to be treated while in Auburn on gameday. The family atmosphere at Auburn and the hospitality each of you shows to our visiting fans does not go unnoticed as letters, e-mails and even reports from visiting media always remind us. Let s also support our student-athletes sportsmanship initiative that is entering its third year. Called Auburn Pride, this program encourages our student-athletes to compete intensely while respecting their opponent. We need to do the same as fans. We are proud of our student-athletes for starting the Auburn Pride sportsmanship initiative, and we ask that you join them by supporting this effort. Again, welcome to Auburn and Jordan-Hare Stadium. Thank you for the support that you provide to our student-athletes and Auburn Athletics. With your help, we will continue to achieve our five goals, which are winning, graduating our student-athletes, managing our fiscal affairs responsibly, complying with the rules and growing and improving the gameday experience. God Bless and War Eagle! AUBURNTIGERS.COM 16 13