Legendary Auburn Quarterback Named Honorary Captain For Aflac Kickoff Game

The Auburn Tigers are set to take on the Baylor Bears in just under two weeks in the 2026 Aflac Kickoff Game in Atlanta on September 5. Yesterday, both teams were granted honorary captains to represent both programs to kick off their seasons during the coin toss.

Legendary quarterback Cam Newton will serve as Auburn’s honorary captain in their opening game under new head coach Alex Golesh. Newton has publicly spoke on starting quarterback Byrum Brown and Golesh, telling them both simply to win games and that he is tired of Auburn struggling to find winning seasons under the last two regimes.

In his lone season on the Plains, Newton did enough for many to argue that he is the greatest Auburn Tiger athlete of all time. On top of the National Championship and Heisman trophy wins, he had 4,327 total yards and 51 total touchdowns in the legendary 2010 campaign.

Newton went on to be the number one overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft to the Carolina Panthers, where he went on to win Offensive Rookie of the Year as well as an MVP and Super Bowl appearance in 2015.

On the other side of the coin toss, the Bears will have a renowned passer of their own representing them.

Baylor picked Robert Griffin III to stand with their team across from Newton and the Tigers. Griffin is a Heisman trophy winner himself, taking home the award a year after Newton in 2011. In his four years at Baylor, Griffin compiled 12,620 total yards and 111 touchdowns.

Griffin spent some time in the NFL with a handful of teams before joining ESPN and now FOX Sports as a color commentator. Griffin was on the call for Auburn’s season opener last year at Baylor when the Tigers won 38-24. Now, Griffin will be on the field without a headset or helmet on.

Newton being chosen as the honorary captain is pretty fitting for this year’s iteration of the Tigers, mainly because of the signal caller on offense.

Brown has already been drawing lofty comparisons to his team’s honorary captain. Brown’s mix of size and athleticism, as well as his rushing upside, has many fans pointing to the Heisman trophy potentially returning to Auburn with an elite season from Brown.

Both Griffin and Newton will be cheering on their alma mater in a pivotal Week One matchup that will be a sign of things to come for both programs in 2026.

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