Apopka’s Cox thrilled to help Tigers shine
ATLANTA — Many football players have a need to be in the spotlight. They need the ball in their hands. They need all of the focus to be on them or they’re not happy. That’s not Chandler Cox. For Cox, his only requirement is to play the game. He’s happy just to smell the grass, get in the dirt, feel the hits and shed the blood, sweat and tears that symbolize his love of the game.
That’s why the former Apopka High star is a perfect fit playing fullback for the Auburn Tigers.
“I honestly love it,” said Cox, who has touched the football all of 21 times in 25 career games at Auburn. “It’s been great for me. I knew I had to work really hard to get playing time when I got to Auburn and it’s been perfect for me.
“I’m so glad that I came to Auburn. It’s been perfect. It’s been awesome.”
At Apopka, Cox was the main cog in the Blue Darters single-wing offense, which he led all the way to the 2014 Class 8A state championship. He’d usually touch the ball more than 20 times per game as the fullback, which is basically a quarterback in the single-wing.
At Auburn, he had to make the transition to not being that guy. He would no longer carry the load, but his role was equally important. He’s Auburn’s blocking back for guys like All-SEC running back Kerryon Johnson.
The Tigers have racked up nearly 3,000 yards rushing during their 10-3 season, which will end today with a date against Cox’s hometown university UCF in the Peach Bowl.
Of the 2,966 yards Auburn has mustered on the ground, Cox has accounted for zero yards with one carry for no gain. Yet he’s paved the way for Johnson, who has 1,320 yards and 17 touchdowns. Cox takes pride in those numbers as though they were his own.
“I’ve gotten the ball six times this year. I can almost count them on one hand, and I’ve scored one time since I’ve been here, but I’m completely fine with that,” Cox said. “I love what I do, I love my position. It’s kind of like what I had at Apopka in that I’ll do whatever I need to do to help the team out and I’ve kinda just carried that to Auburn with me.”
Cox said Apopka head coach Rick Darlington prepared him for not only the next level, but also for him to be a selfless young man who would do anything for his teammates. Darlington preaches humility to his players and for many, like Cox, it becomes a part of who they are as a person, not just a football player.
“Coach Darlington really had a tremendous effect on my life and he’s probably the coach who changed my life the most in my whole career,” Cox said.
“He kinda got me to where I am today. He really pushed me. He didn’t care who was recruiting me. He didn’t care what kind of athlete I was. He treated me just like the kid who didn’t play.
“I love being treated the same as anyone else, and it was the same for Tez [offensive tackle Martez Ivey, now at Florida]. That’s what really helped me. He held me to a standard of leadership, and in the classroom, and on the field. That’s why we were so successful, because of Coach Darlington.”
Darlington doesn’t like personal accolades or individual accomplishments to take away from the achievements of the team as a whole. He rarely lets underclassmen know they have scholarship offers. He doesn’t want it to interfere with their progress.
That’s why Cox never knew he had a scholarship offer from UCF until he reached out to the Knights coaching staff back in 2014.
“I DM’d one of the recruiting coaches on Twitter and asked if they’d offer any H-back or fullback type of guys like me and he said, ‘Well, yeah, we offered you a while back,’ ” Cox laughed. “Coach D probably knew, but you know how Coach D is. He’s always trying to keep our heads on straight and focused on what’s in front of us at Apopka.”
He said he liked UCF when he visited and he’s pumped up to be able to play in a bowl game against the Orlando school.
“I’m extremely excited and extremely excited for UCF and the season they’ve had and the opportunity to play against them is just awesome,” Cox said. “In a big game like this, a New Year’s Six bowl, it doesn’t get any better than this. I’m just extremely blessed.”
Auburn’s season hasn’t been too shabby either.
“Yeah, we’ve had a great season and beating two No. 1 teams [Alabama and Georgia] in three weeks, especially Alabama. That one felt good,” Cox said. “We’re just trying to finish strong this week and go out on top.”