AUBURN, Ala. – While former Auburn coach Gene Chizik high-fived fans during Tiger Walk before the Iron Bowl, former defensive lineman Jeffrey Whitaker walked beside him, carrying a sign that read "National Champions."
"It's amazing. I didn't even know I was going to do this leading up to it," said Whitaker, making his first appearance at Tiger Walk since his senior season of 2014. "It's still the "coach me, Coach" in me."
Auburn's 2010 SEC and national championship team had to wait 11 years to hold its 10-year reunion because of pandemic protocols, but for the several dozen players who returned to the Plains, the gathering was right on time.
"It's surreal," said Aairon Savage, a senior defensive back on the 2010 team. "Any time you can get back here and be a part of the Auburn family and you've got your teammates and buddies here, who you bled and sweat with, it's an awesome feeling."
The reunion included dinner and fellowship Friday at Jordan-Hare Stadium, pregame brunch on Saturday, Tiger Walk an on-field recognition and video tribute.
"There's a lot of great moments that happened on this field," Whitaker said. "When I think about that team, singing 'Lean on Me' after the wins, with Brother Chette (Williams, Auburn's football chaplain) and the whole nine. There are a lot of people who normally don't get the credit, but they got the credit this weekend."
Auburn returned a large senior class after going 8-5 in 2009 in Chizik's first season as head coach. When Cam Newton joined the program in January after a junior college national championship, the journey to a perfect 14-0 season began.
"We were together for so long, and we were just missing that one piece," said Mike McNeil, a senior defensive back in 2010. "When Cam came, everything gelled together."
"It was a 'we over me' mentality," Whitaker said. "The mentality on that team was 'good to great.' We really believed in going good to great in every capacity."
"Our fight," Savage said. "We loved being around each other, and any time there was time on the clock, we took it as an opportunity to go out there and impose our will, and that's what made it great. Being around those guys, it was just unbelievable."
When Auburn beat Oregon 22-19 in Glendale, Arizona, to claim the crown, All-American offensive lineman Lee Ziemba set a program record by starting his 52nd consecutive game.
"The focus, and just heart," Ziemba said. "We had to come from behind so many games and there were also seven one-score games. The way we finished, and the heart we brought in set us apart."
Most of the 2010 Auburn Tigers have transitioned to post-football careers while others are coaching, including Auburn cornerbacks coach Zac Etheridge, and some – Newton, Josh Bynes and Josh Harris – are still playing in the NFL.
Eleven years have passed since that special season, but the bonds and brotherhood that forged greatness a decade ago remain strong.
"It's so awesome to experience this with the guys you spent four or five years with," Ziemba said. "Very special."
"We over me."
— Jeff Shearer (@jeff_shearer) December 6, 2021
🏆 @AuburnFootball 2010 national champs had to wait an extra year for their 10-year reunion.
Ziemba, Savage, McNeil & Whitaker reminisce:
"When @CameronNewton came, everything gelled together."#WarEagle l #AuburnMade pic.twitter.com/rZ7Er6W3OX
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer