Countdown to Auburn vs. Baylor - No. 85 Lawyer Tillman

We are 85 days away from the Auburn Tigers kicking off the 2025 college football season against the Baylor Bears on August 29. Baylor will host the Tigers in Waco, Texas, at 7:00 p.m. CT.

“Time is the longest distance between two places,” is a famous Tennessee Williams quote from his play, The Glass Menagerie. It hits the nail on the head, here. Because if you’re a pent-up Tigers fan, gasping for the breath that is the start of the football season, then 85 days certainly feels like the longest distance between now and kickoff. 

Let AuburnOnSI shoulder some of that footballless burden, follow along as we march that long distance, counting down the days to kickoff by former Tigers’ jersey numbers.

The quote in the context of the play doesn’t really fit here, but we made it work. Coming in at number 85 is 1986 Iron Bowl hero, Lawyer Tillman.

We have done 14 installments of this countdown so far, and have already covered some true legends of the game. A mix of players with illustrious careers and blazing singular moments. Tillman had both. 

After Tillman joined Auburn out of LeFlore High School in Mobile, Ala., he was a four-year contributor for the Tigers and put together a stellar career. He recorded 93 receptions for 1,808 yards, 14 touchdowns, and earned first-team All-Southeastern Conference honors in 1987. 

Ironically, despite the prominent career as a receiver (his marks for yardage and touchdowns still rank in the top-10 in school career history), it is an eight-yard run that solidified his place in the Auburn history books.

In the 1986 Iron Bowl, Auburn was down 17-14. It was second-and-10, ball at Alabama’s eight-yard line. 32 seconds left on the clock. Tigers quarterback Jeff Burger pitched the ball to running back Tim Jessie going right, who then handed the ball to Tillman coming back left.