Sam Jackson has a special celebration planned for Saturday if he finds the end zone against his former team at Jordan-Hare Stadium. The only thing is that he's pretty sure he would get a flag and receive the scorn of his coaches.
"I was talking to one of my teammates about it: get the ball, sign it and then go hand it to the head coach," he said. "But I probably won't. I'll definitely get a penalty, and Coach Nix and Coach Hugh Freeze will go crazy."
Sure, it would be a classic celebration, but getting a celebration penalty wouldn't be the smartest thing to do as the Tigers try to get by the Golden Bears for the second straight season. Last year in Berkeley, it was an ugly game full of turnovers and lack of offense, with Auburn pulling through on a Rivaldo Fairweather touchdown in the fourth quarter for the 14-10 victory. This year's matchup will likely see higher scoring as both teams bring up-tempo offenses in. Jackson sees a significant difference from last year's Tigers to the current squad and even thinks about warning former teammate Jaydn Ott.
"I'll have to let him know it's real over here, for sure," he said. "Just prepare for that."
It will be a meaningful game for the Illinois native as he tries to get back at his former team. Jackson didn't see the opportunity at Cal that is presented at Auburn, not that he blames anyone, saying it's not like he didn't get the chance. It's more of where he wants to be in the future.
"I just had to be smart about what I did and what was the next move," he said. "Because the ultimate end goal is to play in the NFL, and I just didn't know if my future there would take me there, not because of the team but just because of the situation like I explained."
One of those moves was switching to receiver once he got to the Plains. And while the move hasn't been that difficult, it did open Jackson's eyes to how hard it is to be a receiver at this level.
"I definitely have more respect for receivers," he said. "Just running and around and doing that, play after play after play and having to block. You don't necessarily get a reward every single time. As a quarterback, you touch the ball every single play in the offense. But as a receiver, you have to depend on somebody else to get you the ball for your success."
It's not like Jackson has all bad memories of Berkeley. He misses his teammates, especially the roommates he had, who consisted of three receivers and a running back. They formed a special bond, but the move was for the best in Jackson's mind.
As for what he remembers from last year's game, Jackson had nothing but great things to say about the Auburn contingent that made Memorial Stadium sound more like a home game for the Tigers.
"It was crazy to me," he said. "I didn't really talk to anybody about it. It was crazy to me -- just because I came out, and it was like an orange-out. Every time they made a play, the crowd was going crazy. When we made a play, it was kind of like ... you know. It was surprising, for sure."
And does he think Cal fans will arrive in droves, much like their counterparts last year?
"No," Jackson said. "No. Just to be honest, no."
