< Previous UNC OMMON BOND 71 game action coming off the bench for the Tigers. Getting back on the field in a game again was a moment neither will forget. “I was just blessed and honored to still be able to play,” Hamm said. “Being able to get on the field and play the game I love, it meant everything to me. I don’t want to say it was emotional, but at the same time, I was just happy to be back and playing.” Two years later, five years since first finding out about the cancer, Manning and Hamm are now starting together on the offensive line for Auburn. It’s a unit that has proven to be among the best in the SEC, especially recently as the Tigers have gone over 200 yards rushing in four of their last five games. In back-to-back wins over Ole Miss and South Carolina, the offense racked up 430 yards on the ground. For at least two players on the line, their strength comes from their past – a shared past. “I think it definitely makes us stron- ger,” Manning said. “It makes us both stronger.” Thoughts of cancer and the recovery have since turned into thoughts of the future and possibly playing in the NFL one day. Still, not a day goes by where it doesn’t at least cross their minds. But no longer is it an excuse to let up or back down. Now it’s perspective. Now it’s motivation. “I look at it as one of my new begin- nings,” Manning said. “Because I basi- cally had to start over from scratch. Just seeing how far I’ve come from where I’ve been, it pushes me every day to try to get better.” “I don’t like to take anything for granted because football could have been taken away from me back then when I had cancer,” Hamm said. “I just like to use that as motivation to push forward when times get hard. Don’t take anything for granted because it can be there one moment and the next one it could be gone. Just cherish everything. That’s how I live my life.” Hamm and his wife are expecting the arrival of a baby girl in the next couple weeks. “My goal is to be able to hopefully play in the NFL one day and provide for my family and my daughter I have on the way,” Hamm said. For Manning, he too would love a chance to play in the NFL. But that’s not the end goal. “Whether I go to the next level or not or if I go on to have a career, I just want to be the best I can be in life,” he said. “Because I know there’s so much more to it.” A UBURNTI G ERS.C O M (continued from page 23) UNCOMMON BOND: BEATING CANCER PROVIDES STRENGTH FOR AUBURN OL DUO Alabama Contract Sales, Inc. Auburn, Alabama P: 334.821.4500 www.alabamacontractsales.com COMMERCIAL • INDUSTRIAL • INSTITUTIONAL SIDES DRYWALL, INC. 1937 WHATLEY ROAD, BLDG. C |AUBURN, AL 36830 | OFFICE: (334) 826-3264 Capt Shaun Chaplin Phone: 334-844-4355 Email: sdc0039@auburn.edu ROTC BUSINESS FRIENDS WORKING FOR THE FUTURE OF AUBURN Approximately 9 people die and 1,000 are injured every day in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers. Sending or reading a text message takes your eyes off the roadway for 5 seconds. At 55 mph, that is the equivalent of driving the entire length of a football field with your eyes closed. No text is worth a life. LeeCountyDA.org Discipline Drives the Process Finding Value is the Art www.brightinvestmentsllc.com 570 Devall Drive Suite 303 | Auburn AL 334.321.2321 Auburn FB 20.indd 4Auburn FB 20.indd 48/17/20 11:39 AM8/17/20 11:39 AMUNIVERSITY NEW S 73 America has an infrastructure problem. Auburn now has a $22 million solution. It’s at the corner of West Samford Ave- nue and Shug Jordan Parkway, it’s nearly 42,000 square feet, and it’s spectacular. “The U.S. is dealing with significant issues related to aging infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, railways, airports, water- ways, and water and wastewater facilities,” said Steve Taylor, associate dean for engineering research. “It’s a safety issue, but also an economic development issue. Auburn researchers in will now be able to better contribute to designing newer, cost ef- fective infrastructure solutions for years to come thanks to the new (ASEL).” “Advanced” is almost an understatement. The ASEL, one of the largest structural engineering labs in the world, is a technological marvel. The facility, which opened in mid-November, includes a high bay laboratory with a strong wall and strong floor spe- cially engineered to handle extreme structural testing loads; a geotechnical chamber within the strong floor; a concrete materials research and testing laboratory; wind testing capa- bilities that can replicate hurricane-level loads; and faculty and graduate student spaces. Another attractive aspect? Ease of access. Due to its lo- cation, the previous structural testing lab could only accom- modate elements 40 feet in length or under. The new facility allows for elements up to 140 feet long. Additionally, the ASEL’s floor is twice as large as the floor in the previous lab and features anchor points that hold more than 10 times the load. The former structural laboratory in the Harbert Center will be repurposed for other academic and research use. But the ASEL’s most unique feature may be the 4,700-cubic-foot geotechnical test chamber within the strong floor footprint—one of the few test chambers in the nation included in a university laboratory—that will allow the department’s geotechnical researchers to conduct testing on foundations, anchorages, and towers previously only pos- sible in the field. “The new ASEL is a revolution in structural engineering,” said Andy Nowak, chair of the Department of Civil and Environ- mental Engineering. “What was impossible is now possible.” And Novak is excited about who will be doing it. “In addition to helping us secure research grants and proj- ects, the ASEL will help us to recruit the best faculty and the best students,” he said. Taylor agrees. “We now offer one of the best laboratories in the country—if not the best,” Taylor said. “If I’m a student who wants to be a struc- tural engineer, this is the best place to go to school in the nation.” A UBURNTI G ERS.C O M UNIVERSITY NEWS Advanced Structural Engineering Laboratory is a technological marvel BY JEREMY HENDERSON B AND, CHEER & TIGER P A WS 75 BAND, CHEER & TIGER PAWS A UBURNTI G ERS.C O M Marching Band Marching Band Director — Dr. Corey Spurlin Assistant Director of Athletic Bands — Dr. Nikki Gross Percussion — Dr. Doug Rosener Director of Bands — Dr. Rick Good Graduate Assistants Josh Singleton Natalie Smith Daniel Rodriguez Hayden Upperman Tiger Eyes Instructors Beth Bowman (coordinator/flagline) Jessica Coleman (majorettes) Lydia Mitchell (danceline) Tricia Skelton (flagline) Percussion Instructors Andy Martin Aaron Locklear Drum Majors Peyton Flowers Trace Johnson Millie Livingston T.J. Tinnin Tiger Eyes Captains Kelly Reynolds (danceline) Madeline Whitmer (majorette captain) Sydney Turner (flagline captain) Erin Greer (flagline co-captain) 2020-2021 Auburn Cheerleaders Anthony Bostany Elli Bradley, Co-Head Charlotte Dayton Cody Diemont Casey Doerer Gary Gray, Mic-Man Kacie Griffith Tanner Hendrix Caleb Kennefick Kathryn Lusk Rachel Lusk Murphy McCammon Cooper Monistere, Co-Head Cameron Monistere Caleb Moses Emmalyne Phillips Miracle Scott Nic Smith Izzy Smoke Matthew Tuttolomondo Britt Ware Latisha Durroh, Spirit Coordinator 2020-2021 Tiger Paws Catelyn Alexander Rae Brown Olivia Couchot - Captain Abigail Coleman Darby Hines Mary Hanlon Hunton Skylar Johnson Abbey Jones Ellie Korotky Evie Ann Owen Virginia Macoy Mary Hinson Mims Kate Richardson Lucy Rogers Emma Sanders Abby Smith Megan Smith Jessie Stevens Brooke Tarrant Amy Vaporis Helen Baggett - Coach2020 AUBURN TIGERS A UBURNTI G ERS.C O M PAYTON ANDERSON 37RB5-11 n 225 n RFr. 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