Auburn football Twitter recently lit up at the sight of a recruiting graphic featuring the recently opened Buc-cees location off I85 on the Plains.
https://twitter.com/Ernesttheflash/status/1661510644091219971
The graphic is apropos for a fanbase that has become infamous for bombarding opposing basketball Twitter accounts — and sometimes in other sports as well — after losses and has captivated the college football world with the infamous Bo Nix “dark horse” meme and the various Bryan Harsin-era social media gags, including “Hat-gate” and the “crootin’ finger” that was quick to point but seldom seemed to be pointing at recruits the program actually landed.
Needless to say, when UAB football’s official Twitter account looked to undermine the graphic and flex that the Blazers student population also has a Full Moon BBQ on campus, the Auburn football faithful rejected the notion — pointing out that the elite gas station/department store/BBQ cafeteria is actually in Leeds, Alabama.
University of Alabama at Leeds
— MiKE WESTiNHAM (@westinham) May 27, 2023
Fake news. The Buc-ee’s is in Leeds. And as per Charles Barkley, Birmingham is merely a suburb of Leeds
— NeroSteptoe (@NeroSteptoe) May 27, 2023
Buc-ee’s is in Leeds. Please don’t embarrass us like this
— Seth (@TuaMasterclass) May 27, 2023
Leeds is now Birmingham apparently https://t.co/sFbbveWASD
— blooski is missing the underscore (@JamesJones_55) May 27, 2023
Having a doc in the box across the street from the Leeds Buc-ee’s doesn’t count. https://t.co/wpJDIkQe96
— BH (@6pintsofkramer) May 27, 2023
Auburn football and Auburn hoops have major Leeds connections
With a population under 13,000, Leeds, Alabama is a small town with a massive influence on AU’s history.
Of course, Charles Barkley is the most famous export of Leeds and is arguably Auburn basketball’s most famous export as well. Outside of the Neville Arena is a bronze statue of Barkley with a nameplate that bears the name of his hometown.
Auburn football has also had Leeds connections in its history, with former Tigers/current Tennessee DL coach Rodney Garner having been a star for the Green Wave in high school. Current tight end Camden Etheredge, whose father Keith is the head football coach at Auburn High School, is also from Leeds.
With a Buc-cees, one of the world’s most scenic Bass Pro Shops in America, and a town thought of to be the home of American folk hero John Henry, Leeds is very much a town with strong orange and blue roots.
And it is not UAB territory by any stretch.