Nov. 17, 2016
By Jeff Shearer
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. - Lee Ziemba hears it all the time from friends, fans and teammates. Even his former quarterback on Auburn's 2010 national championship team.
"Cam Newton texted Lee and said, 'Man, that baby is too pretty to be an offensive lineman. I'm going to teach him to play quarterback,'" said Lee's wife, Brittney.
Baby Eli, not yet 9 months old, is already a 5-star recruit in the modeling world. Brittney and Lee, an All-American lineman, have fielded offers from talent agencies in Atlanta and Nashville.
"Everybody thinks their baby is beautiful," said Brittney, who was skeptical at first when baby pictures shared on social media yielded modeling inquiries.
"Okay, maybe we're not the only ones who think he's a pretty baby," she said. "Maybe other people do, too."
When friends told Brittney that Eli closely resembles the iconic Gerber Baby, she submitted a picture to the baby food company. Within days, Eli was chosen to be a finalist for Gerber's model for 2017.
Internet voting will determine the winner in several categories ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Eli is in the "crawler" division. A panel will then select the overall winner, who will receive a $50 thousand scholarship and one-year marketing contract.
"Brittney's done a really good job of getting the word out there and getting people to vote," Lee said. "It's fun."
Team Eli members can vote once per day through Nov. 25. Brittney says she learned last week that Eli was in the top 4.
"We felt like we had a pretty good chance with the Auburn fan base, and we have a very unique last name," she said. "We felt like people would recognize that."
To support Eli's campaign, Lee and Brittney produced a video, which includes the graphic, "He will believe in Auburn and love it."
"It was fun putting that video together and see him grow," Lee said. "We hope he grows into a great Auburn man."
"The Auburn family has always been so great to Lee," Brittney said. "They've always supported him through his recruitment, through his entire career and even after, in the NFL. We live back in Auburn, and even now people still recognize him and thank him for winning the national championship. He says, 'It wasn't just me. There were 100 other people on the team as well who won it.'
"We feel so passionate about Auburn because they have been so good to us. The whole family. The staff, the fans, everybody's been so gracious."
Fatherhood, to use a sports analogy, has been a game-changer for Lee.
"It changes your perspective on what's important in life," Lee said. "It really puts you in check on what kind of example you're being to your son. What kind of man you want him to grow up to be."
In his first season of eligibility, Eli Ziemba has already attended his first Auburn game." style="width:100%; height:auto;" class="imported_image" legacy-link="http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/aub/sports/m-footbl/auto_a_storywide/12258297.jpeg"> In his first season of eligibility, Eli Ziemba has already attended his first Auburn game.
With two Auburn graduates for parents, including a dad who started an Auburn record 52 consecutive games from 2007-10, it's no surprise that young Eli has already attended his first Auburn game.
Lee, naturally, kept a close eye the O-line.
"As the season has gone on, I think they've really started to gel," Ziemba said. "They just need to continue to be physical through the remaining games. They've really done a good job at the point of attack most of the year."
Whether or not Eli ends up becoming the Gerber Baby, Lee feels as if he's already won a victory sweeter even than the crystal trophy he hoisted six years ago in Glendale, Az.
"It's been great having him there and watching him grow and learn and become smarter every single day," he said. "It's just been such a blessing."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @jeff_shearer