Former Opelika star Clayton steps up at numerous positions for Auburn

It never really made sense to Spence McCracken, but he didn’t question it and he certainly respected it.

Two years ago, McCracken would look out his window every day, about 15 minutes before his team took the field for practice.

Ten times out of 10, McCracken would see the same player, fully dressed, alone, sitting on his helmet.

There were no rewards for being early, but Zach Clayton acted as if the first player to practice automatically won the 50-50 raffle.

“He just came out and sat,” said McCracken, Opelika High’s longtime coach who will retire at the end of the season. “I’ll always remember him for that.”

The memories of Clayton’s intensity, his solitude and his extreme punctuality are still fresh in his old coach’s head.

They’re just getting started among his new set of coaches and teammates at Auburn.

“He brings a smile to my face,” defensive tackles coach Don Dunn said. “If everybody gave effort like Zach Clayton, we wouldn’t have some of the problems we’ve had.”

The problems have been seemingly endless for Auburn, who travels to Oxford on Saturday to take on Ole Miss. Few, if any, have come from Dunn’s defensive line, in which Clayton has taken his act to every single position at some point this season.

Clayton, recruited as a defensive end, has played that position on both the right and left sides. With a number of Auburn defensive linemen nursing and playing through injuries, Clayton, who has also played hurt this season, has had to fill in at tackle and nose guard.

He has yet to make a start this season — or even in his AU career, for that matter. Still, he has found a way to stuff the stat sheet.

Clayton hasn’t picked up many tackles (13) but he’s made them count. He has picked up three sacks — his most recent coming against West Virginia’s speedy quarterback Pat White — and six tackles for loss. The totals are good for second- and third-best on the team, respectively.

But the effect he’s had as a bounce-around guy, handling each position on the line as if he’s played it since Pee-Wee football, has gained the respect of both his coaches and teammates.

“The only position he hasn’t played is quarterback,” head coach Tommy Tuberville said. “He hasn’t been a surprise; it’s just been good for all the guys to see a guy bounce around.”

Bouncing around is nothing new to Clayton. He’s done it both inside and outside of football.

Clayton is the only current Auburn player who plays two varsity sports. When he isn’t filling in on the defensive line, Clayton throws discus for the Auburn track team. In the spring, he finished second in the discus in the Mideast Regional Championships and 19th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

“I think both of them carry over in different aspects,” Clayton said. “Throwing in some ways has helped with my hips and being more mobile that way — and vice versa in different aspects and situations of the game.“

His father, Jerry, is an assistant coach on the track team. But it’s safe to say that he didn’t need any connections to make the team.

At the 2005 Class 6A State Championships, Clayton’s big throws in both the discus and shot put garnered attention from everybody, not just his immediate competitors.

“When he threw it,” McCracken said, “they had to back up everybody off the track where people were running.“

Clayton won state championships in both discus and shot put that year.

Back on the Opelika football field, McCracken put Clayton through his fair share of maneuvering. Though he primarily was locked down at defensive end, Clayton also came in at fullback for short-yardage situations.

One game, McCracken decided to have Clayton run the ball a few times. He promptly picked up a touchdown.

“He’s good enough to do that,” McCracken said.

Auburn has no plans, as of yet, to bring Clayton aboard to its struggling offense. His versatile work on the D-line is plenty for now.

“Wherever you put him and you need help, he can fill in and provide that help,” defensive end and SEC sacks leader Antonio Coleman said. “He’s been playing great ball for us.

“Looking at Zach Clayton, he makes it look easy.”

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