Countdown to Auburn vs. Baylor - No. 88 Terry Beasley

We are now 88 days away from the Auburn Tigers kicking off the 2025 football season against the Baylor Bears. The game will be a rare Friday appearance for the Tigers and will kick off at 7:00 p.m. CT on August 29 in Waco, Texas. 

As the drudgery of the offseason continues, AuburnOnSI is counting down the days to kickoff with former Tigers’ jersey numbers. Clocking in at number 88 is College Football Hall of Famer and Auburn receiving legend, Terry Beasley.

This is perhaps the easiest selection on this list, seeing as how Beasley’s dueling ochos are just one of three numbers retired by the Tigers. Beasley is a crown jewel among the extensive list of star former Tigers. He played three seasons as a Tiger and became synonymous with legendary quarterback and Heisman winner Pat Sullivan.

In their three seasons together, the Tigers’ dynamic duo hooked up 141 times for 2,507 yards and 29 touchdowns. Both the yards and touchdowns are still receiving records at Auburn. 

Beasley earned second-team All-American honors in 1970 after leading the Southeastern Conference in receptions (52) and yards (1051), and was a unanimous first-team selection in 1971 after 846 yards and 12 touchdowns. 

After leaving Auburn, the San Francisco 49ers selected Beasley in the first round of the 1972 NFL Draft. Injuries held him to just 29 career games in the NFL and forced him into early retirement after just three seasons. 

Beasley’s lasting legacy is one of everlasting greatness, as this name still hangs on the lips of the Auburn Family, young and old. But his mark was not solely emblazoned so bright on the Tigers, but on college football as a whole.

In 2002, Beasley was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.