Aundray Bruce

[toddc 13,194]

48 minutes ago, augolf1716 said:

I was there in that god forsaken stadium and we were a little lucky to win the game. Lawyer Tillman made a great catch for a TD to put us ahead with 24 seconds to go in the game but Bruce was something else that day.

I was shocked the Falcons took him #1 overall first round yes but not #1

 

I had bowling class with Burger and he was a big clown, in a good way. He was really laid back kinda dude.

[weagl1 1,782]

1 hour ago, augolf1716 said:

I was there in that god forsaken stadium and we were a little lucky to win the game. Lawyer Tillman made a great catch for a TD to put us ahead with 24 seconds to go in the game but Bruce was something else that day.

I was shocked the Falcons took him #1 overall first round yes but not #1

 

I had forgotten about that great pass to Tillman to win the game.  I do remember Aundray getting an interception on the final play, running into the end zone, stopping briefly to harass the GT student section and then running on into the dressing room.  He said he was trying to get away from his teammates because he knew they were going to jump on top of him.  He said they still piled on him but it was on the concrete floor and hurt even more.  I know what you mean about the stadium.  Lewis Grizzard used to joke about it being the only college football stadium in America where took out seats.  

[augolf1716 21,109]

1 hour ago, weagl1 said:

I had forgotten about that great pass to Tillman to win the game.  I do remember Aundray getting an interception on the final play, running into the end zone, stopping briefly to harass the GT student section and then running on into the dressing room.  He said he was trying to get away from his teammates because he knew they were going to jump on top of him.  He said they still piled on him but it was on the concrete floor and hurt even more.  I know what you mean about the stadium.  Lewis Grizzard used to joke about it being the only college football stadium in America where took out seats.  

You would think that a school supposedly having a great engineering school could figure how to build a stadium

[Grumps 3,704]

3 hours ago, augolf1716 said:

I was there in that god forsaken stadium and we were a little lucky to win the game. Lawyer Tillman made a great catch for a TD to put us ahead with 24 seconds to go in the game but Bruce was something else that day.

I was shocked the Falcons took him #1 overall first round yes but not #1

 

I was at that game. It definitely seemed like we were fortunate to win. I was surprised at how classless the GA Tech fans were.

[augolf1716 21,109]

46 minutes ago, Grumps said:

I was at that game. It definitely seemed like we were fortunate to win. I was surprised at how classless the GA Tech fans were.

Really?????? Well better to find out sooner then later

I've known what a** holes/pricks they are for well over 70 years and Boddy Dodd was the biggest frickin a** hole/prick ever. I could go on but my blood pressure would explode

[toddc 13,194]

1 hour ago, augolf1716 said:

You would think that a school supposedly having a great engineering school could figure how to build a stadium

I know, right! 😝 

[WVR 818]

My best memory of Aundray Bruce is the 1987 Halloween night game against Florida. He was all over Kerwin Bell that night. One of my favorite games that I attended.

[Grumps 3,704]

2 hours ago, augolf1716 said:

Really?????? Well better to find out sooner then later

I've known what a** holes/pricks they are for well over 70 years and Boddy Dodd was the biggest frickin a** hole/prick ever. I could go on but my blood pressure would explode

I was 19 YO at the time and respected Ga Tech as an excellent school. I was naïve and assumed that class came with intelligence.

[CCTAU 3,314]

9 hours ago, Mikey said:

Those guys had Auburn careers. Aundray Bruce had a few Auburn games. That's how I remember it. I'm sure someone with the technical ability could put together a Bruce highlight film, but over his time here, the highlights weren't very frequent. For example, Fred Beasley and Quentin Groves seemed to give it their all every time out and did something noticeable in most of their games. Bruce had a noticeable game maybe once a year.

As far as the character issues, I don't recall any. Others here do remember some weirdness, but he didn't do things that made the news or got him or Auburn into big trouble.

Aundray stayed in trouble.(just normal stuff) He was in great shape at AU. He ran stadiums every morning at 5AM. Remember, there was no social media back then. 

[AUght2win 6,833]

12 hours ago, Mikey said:

Those guys had Auburn careers. Aundray Bruce had a few Auburn games. That's how I remember it. I'm sure someone with the technical ability could put together a Bruce highlight film, but over his time here, the highlights weren't very frequent. For example, Fred Beasley and Quentin Groves seemed to give it their all every time out and did something noticeable in most of their games. Bruce had a noticeable game maybe once a year.

As far as the character issues, I don't recall any. Others here do remember some weirdness, but he didn't do things that made the news or got him or Auburn into big trouble.

He was 2 time All-SEC??? Does that not qualify as a career?

[fredst 9,064]

6 hours ago, augolf1716 said:

Really?????? Well better to find out sooner then later

I've known what a** holes/pricks they are for well over 70 years and Boddy Dodd was the biggest frickin a** hole/prick ever. I could go on but my blood pressure would explode

So, you don’t like Ga Tech? Just spitballing here based on this post (and about 1000 other similar ones, lol)......

[augolf1716 21,109]

14 minutes ago, fredst said:

So, you don’t like Ga Tech? Just spitballing here based on this post (and about 1000 other similar ones, lol)......

What makes you think that??? I just love gt

[Hopsing 577]

Anyone know what Aundray is up to these days. I don’t recall of hearing him back in Auburn for a game. He may have been, but sometimes you see on TV, or read about it.

[Mikey 16,577]

19 hours ago, Grumps said:

I was at that game. It definitely seemed like we were fortunate to win. I was surprised at how classless the GA Tech fans were.

My last trip to Grant Field: Went by myself and parked a few blocks away. A female classmate, actually she had been my lab partner in two of our labs, was getting out of her car at the same time. She was meeting her fiancee at the game. Naturally, we walked to the game together. Our path led through an area of Ga. Tech dorms. We both had on some Auburn gear. You won't believe the foul, crude comments that were yelled at us from the open dorm windows. Tech students/fans are dirt.

[TigerHorn 1,351]

Seems like I remember Bruce had some ridiculous measurements, like a 28" waist and a 50-something inch chest? The one or two times I saw him around campus, I thought it was believable. 

[Howard Roark 195]

On 11/21/2020 at 10:35 PM, AUght2win said:

He was 2 time All-SEC??? Does that not qualify as a career?

He was a dominate player at Auburn.  Yes he was up and down, but the GA Tech game was not the only time he dominated.  

[Howard Roark 195]

On 11/21/2020 at 6:21 PM, WVR said:

My best memory of Aundray Bruce is the 1987 Halloween night game against Florida. He was all over Kerwin Bell that night. One of my favorite games that I attended.

I was there too.  Awesome game.  Here is the full game on YouTube 

 

[im4aual 487]

The week before the Tech game where he went crazy, Curt Crane was named defensive player of the week for his performance in the North Caroline game.  I was told that Aundray got a little jealous at the attention Curt got and that's what inspired that monster game in Atlanta.

[TXaubie 566]

On 11/21/2020 at 5:21 PM, WVR said:

My best memory of Aundray Bruce is the 1987 Halloween night game against Florida. He was all over Kerwin Bell that night. One of my favorite games that I attended.

Don’t remind me about that game. I was in Alabama for my grandads funeral (moms side).   My Dad’s side Aunt and Uncle scored me and my brother tickets. So we were gonna ride with grandma from dad’s side to the game from B’ham. Before we got out of B’ham I got sick. So she turned around and took me back to mom side g-mas. So first time in Alabama during the season and I had to watch the game on the couch of my grandmas.  My brother got back from game and would not shut up about how cool it was. Smh!!  That’s for letting me share that. Lol

[meh130 1,043]

On 11/20/2020 at 2:40 AM, AUght2win said:

This has always fascinated me. Bruce played before I was born, so he is almost like a myth to me. I mean, he was the #1 overall pick in the NFL draft. He is the last linebacker to be taken with the first pick. Yet, it's like he's completely forgotten in Auburn lore.

Question for those on the board that got to watch him play. How good was Aundray? Was he an undisputed, best-guy-on-the-field type? Any memorable plays or games? Was there national buzz around him? Where did he rank in terms of great Auburn players? Was he the face of the program for a while?

I understand he was an NFL bust (at least relative to his draft spot), but I am so curious about how and why he isn't remembered more. 

Others have commented on Bruce's inconsistency.

What I recall was Bruce was described as "uncoachable". He played by instinct. Sometimes that produced great results, sometimes poor.

I think Pat Dye was shocked Bruce went #1 overall.

That said, physically, Bruce was a beast. Big, tall, fast, and agile. He was listed as 6'-6" and about 236 lbs when he played at Auburn, and got bigger in the NFL. He was very fast and very agile. The NFL clocked him at 4.5 seconds in the 40. He also had long arms, which made his tackle radius big. Watching him play, he just looked bigger than the opposing team members. Don't be fooled by the fact Bruce was only listed as 236 lbs at Auburn. This was back when Stacy Searels was an All American offensive tackle at 270 lbs. Bruce played the weak-side defensive end in the 5-2 defense we ran in the 80s, which meant he was in a very similar role to a Buck in today's defense, as an edge hybrid end/OLB often playing from a standing position and focused more on pass rushing. He was a fun guy to watch play, because he could disrupt the game very quickly with a big sack or tackle.

My Aundray Bruce story was at a blood drive in the basement of Haley Center. Organizations like fraternities and clubs got points for the number of people who gave blood. Apparently the football team had signed up and a bunch of them were standing in line to donate. I was on one gurney donating, and who is getting on the one beside me but Aundray Bruce, and he does NOT want to do this. The other players are giving him grief for being such a wimp about needles. The phlebotomist promises Bruce he won't feel a thing. I am trying not to laugh, given all of the back and forth (and the fact Aundray Bruce was BIG). Eventually, the other football players and the phlebotomist win, Bruce lies on the gurney, and buries his head into his right elbow in order to not see the phlebotomist put the needle into his left arm. Of course the other football players are making comments like "Look how big that needle is!", etc. Bruce is just miserable during the whole thing. Miserable but also laughing at himself and his teammates.

The story of his NFL career is he did not put in enough effort, and he had some serious maturity issues.

[Scribe Tiger 65]

On 11/21/2020 at 7:04 AM, Gr82batigr said:

I heard about the machete story with the addition of Aundray only wearing gym shorts and covered in baby powder😃. In addition to the GT game dominance, he did have a great bowl game vs the USC Trojans if I recall.  I know there are many more highlights of his playing days. He seemed average at times but could dominate when he wanted to do so. Those AU defenses with 6’5” Aundray on one side and 6’6” Bryan Smith on the other side were fun to watch. 

The story I heard from another student working in Sports Information was that he did run through the cheerleaders gathering in JHS with the machete but the baby powder/shorts/machete incident was another time when he scared Coach James Daniels during bed check one night at Sewell Hall. I heard that was the last straw that ended with the machete being taken away. 

I was interviewing James Joseph and Curtis Stewart after a spring practice once, outside the locker rooms in the bottom of Beard Eaves Coliseum and Aundray decided to come out there with a boom box blaring. Stewart and Joseph were doing their best to ignore him and Aundray was doing his best not to be ignored. I wasn't surprised after what I had heard about him.