Auburn Tiger Walk: A Football Tradition You Need to Experience

Auburn Tiger Walk is one of those Auburn football traditions that’s difficult to fully understand until you’re standing along Donahue Drive surrounded by thousands of Auburn fans waiting for the football team to arrive.

If you’re moving to Auburn, Alabama, relocating to Auburn University or coming to your first Auburn football game, don’t make the mistake of thinking game day begins at kickoff.

It starts much earlier.

And Tiger Walk is one of the reasons why.

Before every Auburn home football game, fans gather along the route as Auburn’s players and coaches make their way toward Jordan-Hare Stadium.

It’s loud.

It’s crowded.

It’s orange and blue.

And it’s very Auburn.

What Is Auburn Tiger Walk?

Auburn Tiger Walk is the traditional walk Auburn football players and coaches make toward Jordan-Hare Stadium before home football games.

Fans line Donahue Drive to cheer for the team as it passes.

Today it’s a major Auburn football tradition, but it had much humbler beginnings.

According to Auburn Athletics, the tradition began in the early 1960s when groups of children would meet Auburn players as they walked toward the stadium, cheering for them and asking for autographs.

Over the years, more people joined them.

Then more.

And more.

Eventually, those small groups became the enormous crowds Auburn fans recognize today.

Auburn University (https://www.auburn.edu/) includes Tiger Walk among the traditions that define an Auburn game day.

Where Does Auburn Tiger Walk Take Place?

Tiger Walk takes place along Donahue Drive as Auburn’s football team makes its way toward Jordan-Hare Stadium.

That location has become so closely associated with Auburn football that simply saying Tiger Walk around here generally doesn’t require much explanation.

For someone new to Auburn, however, it’s useful to understand how closely many of Auburn’s best-known landmarks and traditions are connected.

There’s Jordan-Hare Stadium.

There’s Donahue Drive.

There’s Samford Hall.

There’s Auburn University.

And only a short distance away, Downtown Auburn and Toomer’s Corner connect campus life with the city itself.

That’s one of the interesting things about living in Auburn.

The university, football traditions and downtown aren’t separate little worlds. They overlap.

You can find official stadium information at Jordan-Hare Stadium (https://auburntigers.com/jordan-hare-stadium).

The 1989 Tiger Walk Became Auburn History

One Tiger Walk stands above the others in Auburn football history.

December 2, 1989.

That was the day Auburn hosted Alabama at Auburn for the first time.

Before then, the Auburn-Alabama rivalry had been played at Legion Field in Birmingham since the series resumed in 1948.

Auburn estimates that approximately 20,000 people lined Donahue Drive for Tiger Walk that day.

Think about that.

Twenty thousand people weren’t waiting inside the stadium.

They were outside cheering for the team before the game even started.

That day helped cement Tiger Walk’s place in Auburn football history.

What Does This Have to Do With Auburn Real Estate?

More than you might think.

When someone tells me they’re relocating to Auburn University, I don’t think they should evaluate a house solely by bedrooms, bathrooms and square footage.

You also need to think about where you’re living within Auburn.

Do you want to be close to campus?

Would you enjoy being near Downtown Auburn?

Do you want the possibility of walking to university activities from certain locations?

Or would you rather enjoy Auburn football when you choose and then go home somewhere farther from the busiest game-day activity?

Neither answer is right or wrong.

They’re simply different ways of living in Auburn.

That’s why understanding Auburn’s lifestyle matters when you’re choosing a home.

You can explore different areas on my Auburn subdivisions page (https://auburnopelikaalrealestate.com/auburn-al-subdivisons/).

For local shopping information, visit Auburn Mall (https://www.shopauburnalabama.com/).

Families researching public-school information should use Auburn City Schools (https://www.auburnschools.org/) for current information.

Local Auburn Knowledge Matters

Laura Sellers is an Auburn University alumna who has lived in the Auburn–Opelika area since 1988 and has been a REALTOR® for over 20 years. She is an Associate Broker with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Preferred Real Estate, the Official Real Estate Partner of the Auburn Tigers.

I’ve watched Auburn change tremendously over the years, but traditions like Tiger Walk are part of what keeps Auburn unmistakably Auburn.

Thinking About Moving to Auburn?

If you’re relocating to Auburn University or considering buying a home in Auburn, I’d be happy to help you understand not only the real estate, but also the neighborhoods, locations and everyday lifestyle that come with living here.

Laura Sellers, Associate Broker, REALTOR®
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Preferred Real Estate
334-332-7263
AuburnOpelikaALRealEstate.com