Three years have passed quickly since K.J. Britt came to Auburn out of Oxford, Alabama, in January of 2017, and the senior linebacker has given his all to his school on and off the field.
An All-SEC linebacker in 2019, when he recorded 69 tackles and 10 tackles for a loss as a starter, the vocal leader and newly elected team captain approaches the game with a specific mindset as he begins his final collegiate season.
"Just making sure I'm leaving a legacy, a legacy that can be remembered for years to come and building a foundation for this team – that's what I want to accomplish my senior year," he said without hesitation. "I want to make sure the foundation we build for this team is built on solid ground, and I'm making sure I give it my all.
"I hope when I'm done people will remember me as a player who loves the game, who knows the game, who is physical and wants to win. I expect a lot out of my teammates – I put a lot on my teammates -- but I expect a lot out of myself too, maybe more."
That sense of responsibility has grown during his time on the Plains, as people like "Travis Willliams, Brother Chette (Williams), Coach G (Rodney Garner), Tre' Williams, Marlon (Davidson), Derrick (Brown), Deshaun (Davis) formed the foundation for me and before me. Those people are an inspiration to me, along with my heroes, which are my mom, my dad and my grandparents."
Growing up, Britt did some foundation-building himself. "Really and truthfully, my biggest challenge was just working on me and making sure that I didn't fail. I didn't want to let anybody down," he recalled. "I wanted to make my parents proud, my family proud.
"I started playing football when I was 4, because my dad had preached football to me, and it became a recurring thing every year, every fall that we looked forward to. I haven't missed a year since."
On preseason watch lists for the Lott IMPACT Trophy, Bednarik Award, Butkus Award and Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Britt enjoys the methodical nature of his sport.
"What I love about football is that I enjoy the process of it. How everything can seem so shaky starting out, but when you look back, the process is really what gives me joy – each year, building the team, going through the season, then looking at the success you had that season.
"Everything is really a process – it's the steps you take to make sure that your process outcome is better than what it could be or what you really couldn't see," the SEC Academic Honor Roll student explained. "It's taking the steps day by day, night by night, week by week, month by month and just trying to make sure you're working to be the best you can be during those times."
Back in 2017, Britt's goal as a freshman was a simple one. "Just trying to make it out of camp was my total focus," he recalled. "Those were probably some of the hardest times of my life mentally, because I had to take a hard look and make sure that I was really dedicated to the game, that I really loved football.
"I had to run through some walls mentally and physically back then. But I thought, that's what I signed up for, and now I'm here I have to make sure I maximize my potential by effort. My freshman year, I really had to change my body through work. I wasn't the most athletic guy – I'm still not the most athletic guy – but I had to try to get the most out of my body that I could. I started eating healthy and started doing stuff that I didn't know how to do before to become transformed."
Britt says his Auburn career has featured more of the same. "Maximizing my potential through effort – that's what I try to do," he said. "Trying to get the most out of my athletic abilities, trying to make the most of my game, trying to get the most out of everything that's important to me in school, education, in everything."
His goal for his senior season is two-fold. "A national championship – obviously that's what we're working toward. And what I would consider success is getting some guys who really weren't in the boat, who weren't getting the most out of Auburn, for them to prevail and grab something from Auburn – grab a degree, grab some type of individual award, grab something that makes a difference in their life."
Britt, who is scheduled to graduate in December from the Harbert College of Business, feels he has grabbed success and more with the Tigers. "The family the camaraderie, the blue-collar aspect – I will always carry that with me," he said. "At Auburn, you're given nothing – you have to get it. That's how I was raised in life, and that's what I like, being behind the scenes, working and surprising people.
"The thing that surprises you when you get to Auburn is the hard work that everybody embraces around you. People are not stagnant and satisfied with any success. You have to make sure that you come to work every day. Being at Auburn, that's something that goes on in the classroom, it goes on out on the field and it goes on in life.
"And then the emotion of War Eagle. It's a battle cry to me – something that people wake up saying instead of good morning. Hearing War Eagle gives you a mindset for your day -- joy to you and happiness."
A veteran who goes the extra mile with organizations like the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Omega Phi Psi fraternity and the SEC Student-Athlete Leadership Council, Britt, with a big heart and strong character, is always willing to help.
"That's how I was raised up by my mom – she instilled that into me, to put a smile on people's face, to make sure you lift people up and you go out of your way to speak to people," he said. "Watching my parents do what they do to try to help, it was instilled in me at a young age and became a habit with me. I really don't know how to say no."
And he's just as adamant about his senior season, even during a pandemic.
"Don't let adversity predict the outcome, ever," he said. "There's been so much adversity through these times, but we can't let it predict the end, the goal, the outcome, why we're working.
"In life, I just can't let adversity predict how I'm going to end something. It's my senior year, so I can't let it predict how we'll end. We will keep working no matter what."
