Auburn football honors Luke Deal and Marquis Burks as Week 4 captains

Ahead of the week four matchup versus the Georgia State Panthers, Auburn football announced their honorary team captains on Twitter. Joining season-long team captains Owen Pappoe and Chandler Wooten for week four will be Luke Deal and Marquis Burks.

Luke Deal is a sophomore tight end who is entering his third season with Auburn football after redshirting his freshman year. Deal has played in every game this season so far and has one tackle in the Penn State game.

The tight end is facing adversity off the football field as well this season, as his father was diagnosed with ALS earlier this year. Deal’s teammate, Auburn center Nick Brahms, launched a GoFundMe campaign with the goal to help Deal’s family with medical expenses during this difficult time.

You can follow this link to donate and share the campaign!

So far, supporters that include members of the Auburn family have raised over $62,000 for Deal’s family, and the tight end has been overwhelmed by the support, per AL.com:

"“My family’s shocked,” Deal said. “I’m shocked. To have somebody like Nick and all the rest of my teammates who are helping spread awareness and comfort me during this time has been incredible.”"

Auburn football’s other honorary week four captain will be Marquis Burks, senior defensive tackle. In his two seasons on the Plains, the JUCO transfer has played in eight games and racked up 12 total tackles, including four tackles for loss, and three sacks.

Despite moving from Iowa Central Community College to a completely new area of the country, adapting to football with COVID-19 protocols, and going through a coaching change on the Plains, Burks connected immediately with the Auburn family and says his goal has remained the same:

"“Be coachable and grind it out every day,” he said."

Auburn football’s honorary captains this week are two players that are valuable not only to the team but also to the community. On the Plains, just like the SEC, it just means more.