If you don’t know already, I love Auburn University, and graduated from there in ‘06 (undergrad) and ‘07 (grad school). I come from a family full of Auburn alumni; and grew up going to the games and loving all things Auburn. I fell in love with Auburn football in 1993 when I was 10 years old. Auburn went undefeated that year and Terry Bowden was the head coach. In 2004, while I was in school there, Auburn had another remarkable undefeated season.
But this isn’t just about Auburn football, it’s for everyone.
As we were watching the dumpster fire that was the Auburn vs. Georgia game last weekend, my husband, Pat, said “Good teams find a way to win. Bad teams find a way to lose.” He also said, “you can never leave a game up to the refs.” Of course he was right about both things, and Auburn seemed to find a way to lose.
After the game, I saw all the posts about people loving Auburn anyway despite the game. I agree, and have made the same statements many times. “War Eagle anyway” is what we say to each other. Auburn is a family, after all. It really is true.
But winning with our family is way more fun than losing.
Over the past few years, my favorite part of football Saturdays has become Auburn’s Tiger Tailgate radio show, hosted by former Auburn quarterback Jason Campbell and former running back Ronnie Brown, both members of the legendary 2004 team. Often on the show, they feature a guest that was one of their teammates and this is my favorite thing to listen to. They tell stories, they laugh, they make fun of each other. It’s the epitome of the Auburn family. I love it.
As an Auburn Tigerette (Football/athletic department hostess) from 2003-2004, I had a front row seat to watch this incredible team. And do you know what I saw, what is still evident when you hear them talking to each other on the radio? These guys were brothers. And this 2004 team was a team that found a way to win.
What struck me about Auburn’s game Saturday was not the bad calls (horrible!!), not the lack of leadership from coaches, but the attitude of the players. It’s an attitude I’m familiar with- I’ve seen it in myself, and I see it often in the kids we are raising today.
After several bad calls, including one critical bad call that should have been an Auburn touchdown, Auburn’s offense just couldn’t seem to recover. At one point, I saw a key offensive player throw down his helmet on the sidelines after he made a bad play. Then, he appeared to be sitting on the sidelines all by himself. I don’t know him, but on TV, it looked like he was pouting. I couldn’t blame him. I was furious and I wasn’t even there. If I were him, I’d be mad at the refs, frustrated, and disappointed in my own performance too. But you know what I thought (well I actually said it out loud), “He needs to get over himself. This team needs him.” And what if… what if he HAD gotten over himself? What if he had pushed his feelings aside, stepped up as a leader, and fought for and with his brothers on the team? I don’t know if coaches still call it “overcoming adversity” but that is what Auburn could not do on Saturday.
And so of course I can’t help but contrast this current team (and pretty much all of Auburn’s recent teams) to the 2004 team. It was evident that the 2004 team wasn’t just playing for themselves. They were playing for each other, and something else even bigger. At the end of their perfect season, then head coach Tommy Tuberville said this:
“We had a team this year at Auburn that was 13-0. You would think that the ego of that team would be phenomenal. Just the opposite. They loved each other. We had a football team that believed in each other, that loved each other every day at practice. We had eighteen seniors who were the leaders of that bunch along with Chette Williams.”
(“Hard Fighting Soldier”- Chette Williams)
The team loved each other. They were humble. They were leaders. The late Rev. Chette Williams (the team chaplain, and “Brother Chette” to anyone around the football team at the time), was given much credit for helping to unite that team. In fact, in his book “Hard Fighting Soldier”, Rev. Chette describes one of the team’s weekly FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) meetings, where player introduced a song to the team and it went like this:
“I am a hard fighting soldier, on the battlefield. I am a hard fighting soldier, on the battlefield. I am a hard fighting soldier, on the battlefield. I keep bringing souls to Jesus by the service that I give.”
(Copyright Cecil O Lyde)
Later, after a different prayer meeting, Stanley McClover (fiercest defensive end, and my neighbor in Auburn!), requested the song again, and this time many of the players joined in. The quiet prayer meeting turned into a praise and worship session. At that Saturday’s game, the team locked arms as they entered the field instead of running out. Rev. Chette said they walked out with “quiet confidence knowing that God was ordering their steps.” We all remember it. They beat Tennessee 31-3 that game. After that, every Friday night they sang “Hard Fighting Soldier” and every Saturday they hooked arms to walk on the field.
Humble confidence. Trust in God. Brothers.
Now, here we are in 2025, players who appear to be pouting on the sidelines. Another team unable to overcome adversity. And it seems to me like the current culture we live in (a culture of instant gratification, internet fame, one that says “love yourself”, “you deserve more”, “your feelings are your truth”…) is making these problems worse. The NIL and transfer portal only fuel the self-love, self-first problem, because they encourage these young players to have a “me” mentality. But the thing is, this “self first” mentality is everywhere- me too (see my testimony), and in the kids growing up today. Our family is around sports a lot, my husband coaches, and I’ve heard even coaches at higher levels talk about this issue. Kids can’t recover like they used to. Often the dads and granddads may describe kids today as “soft.” And I agree. They strike out, or mess up in a game, and they are completely crushed and can’t get over it.
Watching the Auburn vs Georgia game, and what looked like pouting on the sidelines, all I could think was “what can we do about this!?” Obviously, I can’t do anything about the NIL or transfer portal, but I can do something with the lives God entrusted to me. Alongside my husband, I can do my best to raise my boys to be resilient, humble, and mentally tough.
Why?
I want them to be Hard Fighting Soldiers one day.
How? I don’t have all the answers, but what I will do is this: I will tell them the same thing I tell myself, to “get over themselves.” To think of themselves less and others more. To teach them, the best that I can, to take up their cross and follow Jesus. I will let my husband be tough on them, remembering that we are raising them to be MEN. I will let him be their dad, and the leader of our family. Not me. God made men and women differently, and our boys need both of us. We will let their coaches be tough on them, and let them try and fail. We will teach them Jesus loves them. We will read the Bible together, pray together; and teach them traditional values such as respect for authority, responsibility, and accountability. We will have dinner together as a family as often as we can, and value each other over ourselves.
That’s the only thing I know to do. Look at the end of the Hard Fighting Soldier song:
“I keep on bringing souls to Jesus by the service that I give.”
The service that I give. Sacrifice. And brining souls to Jesus- the ultimate goal.
“And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.”
Luke 9:23-24 ESV
I’m so thankful for the 2004 team and the example they can be for our boys.
It’s still great to be an Auburn Tiger.
I asked my parents what advice they would give parents today. Here is what they said
1. Model Christ-like behavior
2.Prioritize prayer, reading God’s word and worship as a family
3. Communicate honestly and openly.
-David and Nancy McKinney (both class of 1981)
Pinestraw Mountain 