'He loved being that voice for Auburn': broadcast partners remember Rod Bramblett

'He loved being that voice for Auburn': broadcast partners remember Rod Bramblett'He loved being that voice for Auburn': broadcast partners remember Rod Bramblett

In 2003, Rod Bramblett joined Stan White to call Auburn football games, a partnership that spanned 16 seasons and 208 games (Photo: Todd Van Emst)

AUBURN, Ala. – Beneath a pile of jubilant teammates, Auburn's Chris Davis lay in the north end zone, his 109-yard return of a missed field goal having won the Iron Bowl.

Up in the press box on the west side of Jordan-Hare Stadium stood Rod Bramblett, the Voice of the Auburn Tigers, perfectly balancing his orange-and-blue passion with his professionalism. 

"You can see when everyone was going crazy, including me, he knew that that was an important call and he continued to make it, and he nailed it," said Stan White, Bramblett's broadcast partner for 16 seasons, describing a video captured by Auburn Network producer Jessi Duval of the mayhem in the radio booth as the Tigers beat Alabama 34-28 in 2013.

They didn't keep 'em off the field that night.

"And he nailed it every single time, in my opinion," White said. "That's what I admire as much as anything, the person he was. He loved being that voice for Auburn and he did it to its fullest."

For 208 games, White, Auburn's quarterback from 1990-93, teamed with Bramblett, beginning in 2003 when Rod replaced Jim Fyffe, who died unexpectedly three months before football season.

"He knew that taking over after a legend, in Jim, that it was going to be a very, very tough task," White said. "But he embraced it. He never wanted to be the next Jim Fyffe. He knew he was not going to fill that role. He wanted to be the next Rod Bramblett, and that's what he became. He became that voice of a generation.

"It was an honor and a privilege to be in the same booth with an iconic sports figure. And he didn't look at himself that way at all. He was that kind, decent person that we all knew before he became the voice.

"To have shared the mic with him, the same booth with him. He was not a colleague or co-worker of mine, he was a brother. That's what makes it difficult because he looked at us and we all looked at each other like family. We clicked. It just worked together."

Sonny Smith and Rod Bramblett at the 2013 SEC Men's Basketball Tournament

Throughout Auburn men's basketball's first Final Four run, from Salt Lake City to Kansas City to Minneapolis, Sonny Smith sat next to Bramblett, describing the Tigers' incredible journey.

"Most fun I've had in years," said Smith, Auburn's coach from 1978-89. "We just had so much fun, especially before the games, after the games, and sometimes during the games.

"Somebody said it was a job. It was never like a job, it was like a fun thing to do, couldn't wait to get to the next one. That was the way it was with us."

When Smith retired from coaching at Virginia Commonwealth in 1996, he began analyzing games on television before transitioning to radio with Rod on Auburn's broadcasts.

"Professionalism was No. 1," Smith said. "He was as prepared for every game as anybody I ever worked with and I did television for a long time. He's such a hard worker. He stayed at his job.

"You didn't see him except at meals and going out to do his walk. We spent enough time that we got to know each other pretty good. It's hard to find a better person than that guy.

"His opening, those opening statements that he makes would build a picture so much, you'd get to thinking you were at the game. I always couldn't wait to listen to them. Brad Law would lead it off with one that was terrific, and then Rod would come on with one that was more terrific."

In Auburn Arena, the same venue where Rod and Sonny teamed up to describe Auburn's accomplishments, Smith will speak Thursday at his friend and broadcast partner's memorial service. Rod and Paula Bramblett died Saturday from injuries suffered in a car accident.

"You've got to be coming from the heart," said Smith, mentioning that he will focus on Bramblett living out his dream of being Auburn's play-by-play announcer. "It can't be like Ol' Sonny up there telling jokes. It's got to be something that is as serious as I've ever tried to talk about."

The Voice of the Auburn Tigers. Silenced, but leaving a legacy that will continue to speak volumes to each life he impacted.

"The one thing that I admire so much about what Rod did is he took his role as the voice of Auburn and embraced it wholeheartedly throughout his whole time," White said. "Off the air, on the air, he loved it. He felt that was his calling, and he never took it for granted. He took pride in it and he realized the importance of it."

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer