C.J. Uzomah said he received the call from Gus Malzahn late Sunday afternoon. The Auburn coach wanted to know two things: Would he want to go to Birmingham with him Monday morning for SEC Football Media Days, and did he have a suit?
Uzomah cheerfully accepted, then Stephanie Uzomah sprung into action.
“(Malzahn) was like, ‘Do you have a suit?’ I was like, ‘Ah, yeah, I’ve got to call my mom, like right now,’” Uzomah said.
Home for Auburn’s senior tight end happens to be Suwanee, Ga., north of downtown Atlanta, and Uzomah said his mother made the drive in two hours and 15 minutes from the time they hung up the phone.
“I was, like, ‘Ma, I hope you didn’t speed,” Uzomah said with a laugh. “She was there pretty quick!”
That was just part of the problem. Uzomah wasn’t sure there last time he had worn a suit and he’d never worn the drak blue one he was sporting Monday afternoon at the Hyatt Regency Wynfrey Hotel.
“It’s my first time wearing this suit so I’m glad it fits kind of nicely,” Uzomah said. “It was definitely a shock but it was definitely an honor.”
Uzomah was filling in for Auburn’s quarterback, Nick Marshall. Marshall was originally slated to appear as one of the Tigers’ three players but was scratched on Sunday. Auburn officials decided not to bring Marshall after he was cited Friday for misdemeanor pot possession during a traffic stop in central Georgia.
“Obviously as a team we were extremely disappointed,” said Uzomah, who caught nine passes for 146 yards and 3 touchdowns from Marshall last season. “But at the same time, he’s going to learn from this mistake. Coach Malzahn is going to address it and deal with it accordingly. (Marshall is) still our leader. We still have all the confidence in the world and faith in him and we know he’s going to bounce back from this.”
In the meantime, Uzomah said he was more than happy to serve as Marshall’s backup.
“I love it. I feel like it’s an honor and a privilege to be here representing Auburn with Gabe (Wright) and Reese (Dismukes) and I’m sure they feel the exact same way. I’m glad to represent the school.”
