AUBURN | Luke Deal signed with Auburn in the 2019 class along with a number of other standouts including Bo Nix, Derick Hall and Colby Wooden.

Three coaches and more than five years later, Deal is the last man standing from his class and less than two months from beginning his sixth season at Auburn.

"He’s considered the grandpa on the team right now,” said fifth-year tight end Brandon Frazier. “He’s the old head.”

Deal, 6-foot-5 and 259 pounds, will enter this season with 54 games played, just eight behind former tight end John Samuel Shenker’s school record of 62.

He’s taken on a bigger and bigger leadership role with the team every year. He represented AU at SEC Media Days last summer and was named a team captain.

He’s an important part of the leadership council for this year’s team.

“We’ve met for hours and hours, and days and days,” said Deal. “A lot of people don’t realize how much time you put in when you are trying to drive the culture. With the emphasis we put on it this year, it’s a lot more responsibility.”

It’s a responsibility that Deal takes seriously.

“With Auburn football being the huge brand that it is and so many people relying on us, you have to do the right thing. So that’s what we’re trying to drive here,” he said.

Deal was seeing the results with a group of newcomers and second-year players as early as this spring.

"This class, some of these transfers that have come in, they’re really impressive in terms of wanting to be leaders and moving towards that, because some of them, even the ones who played last year, were not doing the right thing last year and now they’re trying to be leaders which is really neat to see,” said Deal.

Deal’s been through a lot during his time in Auburn. He was married and lost his father, Chris, to ALS in 2022. He and his wife, Ansley, are expecting their first child next month, just in time for the start of his final season.

“I’m blessed and thankful and I can’t wait for my baby boy to be born,” he said.