AUBURN, Ala. – Zac Etheridge, Carnell Williams and Marcus Davis each left Auburn University with a degree in one hand and a championship ring on the other.
They came back to the Plains to help others do the same.
"To have guys who went through this program come back years later to serve and give back to their alma mater that's been so inspirational to them, it's special," said Williams, Auburn's associate head coach and running backs coach who provided inspired leadership while serving as interim head coach for the final four games of the 2022 season.
Auburn's program leader with 46 touchdowns and second-leading all-time rusher, Williams helped the Tigers win the 2004 SEC Championship during a 13-0 season while earning All-America honors.
Auburn's secondary coach, Etheridge arrived in 2007, captaining the 2010 national champions as a senior.
While 2023 marks Williams' fifth season as an Auburn assistant coach and Etheridge's third, receivers coach Marcus Davis joined head coach Hugh Freeze's first staff in December.
"You know what it takes to win here," said Davis, a receiver and punt returner for the Tigers from 2013-16. "It's an honor to be back and a privilege to serve these student-athletes who I get to lead. I know to whom much is given, much is required."
Ingrained with the Auburn Creed, the trio of Tiger alums seeks to pass along to their players the attributes that have fostered Auburn football success since the days of Shug Jordan to Pat Dye.
"We all love Auburn," Davis said. "We all know what it truly is to be an Auburn man. We all believe in work, hard work. We want to create that for the next generation, the guys we get to mentor."
"We all think the same way with the work, hard work," Etheridge said. "We're not selling Auburn. We actually lived it. It's in our DNA to share with families how we've been able to come to Auburn and be successful by the way we walk and how we treat people."
"They bring that blue-collar mentality and that work ethic," Williams said of his fellow Auburn football lettermen. "They're out there giving back, serving guys. We have a chip on our shoulder and so much love for this program because it's been dear to us and so good to us."
While striving to win games and experience championship seasons as they did in their playing days, the homegrown coaches are motivated by a higher calling.
"It's bigger than football for me," Davis said. "It's about changing lives in the way that Auburn changed my life and giving them the opportunities I had."
"It's easy for us to work together because we all understand what Auburn is about," Etheridge said. "We understand what it's like to put on that AU every day. We don't take it for granted. This is an opportunity to work for this university that helped us get to where we are now."
"A lot of people poured into my life," Williams said. "I tell student-athletes you're giving people hope. Whatever community you're from, you're an inspiration and a role model. Truly changing lives. I think this is what it's all about. We are competitors. We want to see this program back on top."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer