Published: March 29, 2008 07:34 pm            

ROY WARD JR.: Passionate about the Tigers

Cullman County is full of Tiger fans, but most are not as enthusiastic about Auburn football as Roy Ward Jr.

The former president of The Cullman County Auburn Club, whose black Dodge Intrepid bares a tag with the phrase “AUBURN #1,” has a wall in his living room that is a personal shrine to his pigskin passion that began when Ward became a fan at 5.

“My mother and uncle would go to the Auburn games played at Birmingham and they would bring me shakers,” said Ward before remembering, “They didn’t have shakers back then.”

They did, however, have “pinups” purchased for Ward, who used the souvenirs to decorate his room.

Today, the 65-year-old has an Auburn emblem made by his late mother, Evelyn Ward, using crochet that is a centerpiece of Ward’s wall of War Eagle memorabilia.

One thing the former financial office manager hasn't forgotten are the plays that have become part of the collective consciousness of longtime Tiger fans. The wall serves as a daily reminder of those celebrated moments that turned collegiate athletes into Plains legends.

Ward’s voice goes up a notch when he remembers “The Sack Game,” pointing to a photo in which a few Big Blue defenders recognizable only by their numbers stand over former Alabama quarterback Brody Croyle.

Other photos are captured moments of Tiger lore, including the “Punt Bama Punt” game. And a memorable game in which sports legend Bo Jackson vaulted over his less legendary playmates. A personal favorite for Ward is a photo of himself with Ralph “Shug” Jordan, the Tigers’ answer to Paul "Bear" Bryant. Ward and Jordan met in 1973.



You Can’t Win

Them All

Of course, the record shows they weren’t all good days at Jordan-Hare stadium, particularly the era sandwiched between the university's two Heisman trophy winners, quarterback Pat Sullivan who won in 1971, and Jackson, who scored the award named after former AU coach John Heisman in 1985.

“I stuck with them — even through the Barfield Days,” Ward said referring to the team’s 1976-1980 head coach. Doug Barfield barely broke even at Auburn where he racked up a 29-25-1 record.

Ward is more fond of Barfield’s replacement, Pat Dye, and not only for his accomplishments on the field.

“The best thing Dye ever did was get the Iron Bowl moved out of Birmingham,” Ward said, growing irritated thinking about past Auburn-Alabama matchups he said were unfair.

“I wonder how many of those games we would have won?” he pondered, considering that the Tigers have a home field advantage when games are played in Auburn and his team has never lost a game in Tuscaloosa since its first game there in 1990, the year after the teams stopped meeting at Legion Field.

Despite his attitude on the Iron Bowl, the Birmingham stadium where Auburn and Alabama faced off each year from 1948 to 1989 holds a special memory for Ward; it is where he witnessed a 1978 game in which Auburn beat then No. 2 ranked Tennessee, which Ward said was favored to win by 28 points. Ward said the game was especially memorable because he saw it with several members of his family.



A Plains View

Today, Ward said he notices more vehicles like his — automobiles sporting Auburn tags.

“Used to it wasn't that way — It was all Alabama nearly,” said Ward who continues to serve on the board of the Cullman Auburn Club, an organization for all Tiger fans, regardless of affiliation with the university.

Ward said he believes Alabama’s inability to win against Auburn for the last six years has had a role in the current tide of new Tiger fans. However, he said he is worried about Auburn’s future ability to keep the streak alive, partially because of coach Nick Saban’s recruiting success this year that earned Alabama’s new class consideration as the best in the NCAA.

Despite Alabama’s anticipated return to full strength, Ward said he anticipates continued success for the Auburn Tigers and looks forward to the opportunity to make additions to his tribute to touchdowns and add new chapters to the Auburn oral historian’s Tigers tale.

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.