Many football players would be discouraged by obstacles in the way of their dream to play professionally, but former Auburn defensive tackle Jeff Whitaker is familiar with adversity.
Whitaker has endured his fair share of hard times, beginning when his mom died of cancer when he was 12 years old.
Whitaker said he struggled with his mom’s death at first, but it eventually led him to pursue football.
“I thought suicidal thoughts when my mom passed,” Whitaker said. “I lost hope at one point. That’s where, because of my faith and my belief in Christ, I believe (God) gave me football. I thought it was crazy to go out there and sweat and beat up on people. What changed that is the anger I had at one point at God, at family, I used that anger at football. So when I started playing football, I was mad. Because when I looked in the stands, I didn’t see my mom.”
Whitaker also struggled with the loss of other family members throughout his life.
“Another adversity is when I was battling my knee injury [in 2013], I lost both of my grandmothers within eight months of each other,” Whitaker said. “Even at the SEC Championship Game, I couldn’t be there for my teammates because I was at Piedmont Hospital watching life leave my grandmother. Losing those two, that was huge. Since 2003, I’ve lost over a dozen close relatives. But if it weren’t for my struggles, I wouldn’t be who I am today.”
Former Auburn defensive end Nosa Eguae, who was Whitaker’s teammate from 2010-13, said Whitaker is a great guy to have on a team because of his infectious joy.
“He loves on everybody,” Eguae said. “If you’re having a bad day you can feed off of him. A lot of people are up one day, down the next. Jeff just has a certain consistency of joy and happiness.”
Whitaker said there have been many people in his family who helped him through difficult times in his life.
“I had a lot of people who helped me along the way,” Whitaker said. “When my mom died, [my dad] gave me a lot of encouraging words. My brother was the most important person in the whole situation. He came to me and said ‘Listen, mom’s gone, I’m going to have to be tough on you.’ For two years after my mom passed, it was me and my brother.”
Whitaker said there were also people at Auburn who helped him move past the tough times he endured in his personal life.
“Tracy Rocker recruited me and was my biggest influence in coming to Auburn,” Whitaker said. “Auburn was the place I couldn’t say ‘no’ to. Still to this day, [going to Auburn] is the best decision I’ve made. My best friend is Nosa Eguae, who I met at Auburn. It was really everybody at Auburn. Coach Rodney Garner, Coach (Gus) Malzahn, all the guys on the defensive line. Everyone was great to me during my time at Auburn. ”
Whitaker said there are things he learned at Auburn that still stay with him today.
“I learned that (Auburn) is a family,” Whitaker said. “I lost a lot of family, so to be in the Auburn Family, to have that second home, it’s great in my life. I think it taught me to love again and dream bigger. Auburn has changed my perspective in a lot of ways on life. I learned a lot at Auburn. Auburn is home.”
Whitaker was highly recruited out of high school and experienced success during his first two years at Auburn.
The defensive lineman appeared in every game in the 2010 season, which ended in a national championship for Auburn. He followed with a great individual season in 2011, starting all 13 games and totaling 25 tackles.
After the promising start to his career, Whitaker was held back by injuries and coaching changes in each of his final three seasons at Auburn.
“It was tough,” Whitaker said. “You’ve got your name on peoples' radar, you’re rated [on draft boards], there was a possibility of leaving early, and then there were coaching changes and injuries. You have to deal with all that. When I looked back at my life and saw the other struggles that I overcame, I just looked at it as one more hurdle. It’s been a humbling experience, but I always kept faith. I always kept a sound mind.”
Eguae said Whitaker’s resiliency is one of his best attributes.
“He came back in 2012 and faced injuries,” Eguae said. “In 2013, he had to get redshirted right before the season started. And to come back from that and have his senior year cut short from injuries as well, he’s an overcomer. You never see him ever get too low. That’s what makes it all so hard. He puts so much work in and so much effort, and you see it. He’s always about continuing the grind and continuing to get better and focusing on continuous growth.”
Whitaker said graduating in December 2014 with a degree in communication is something he’s proud of.
“It’s amazing because that was never my dream,” Whitaker said. “It was for my mom, because I know she would have been so proud of that.”
Whitaker is now training near his hometown of Macon, Georgia, in hopes of being signed as a free agent by an NFL team.
“I’ve been doing a lot of stadium stairs, I’ve been flipping tires, a lot of bear crawls and just staying active,” Whitaker said. “I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been in. My body is the healthiest it’s ever been. I feel good.”
Tim Reynolds is the owner of Tim’s Total Fitness in Byron, Georgia, where Whitaker has worked out since he was 15 years old.
“Everybody is different,” Reynolds said. “Everybody trains differently and looks at taking care of themselves differently. Jeffrey’s got the motivation in him to train harder. Some people are just that way. Some people are content with the way they are and what they’re doing and don’t want any more out of life. Then you’ve got some people that want more, and they put in extra [work] to get it. Some people will put that much in because they know it takes that much to get what they want. I feel like Jeffrey is one of those people.”
Reynolds said it is important that the young people in the community have someone like Whitaker to look up to.
“He has a big influence,” Reynolds said. “For younger people to look at someone like Jeffrey, from a small town, and to see what he’s done, it’s a big influence. We need more people like Jeffrey. He’s got good character. Everyone that talks about him talks about how kind he is.”
Eguae said Whitaker was always a great leader during his time at Auburn, even when he was not able to be on the field.
“He didn’t play in 2013, but he was a leader on that team” Eguae said. “He was one of the heartbeats on that team and one of the heartbeats on our defensive line. He was there the whole way.”
Whitaker said his passion for football has helped him continue to work hard and chase his dreams.
“I love ball, I love it,” Whitaker said. “If I liked it, I wouldn’t be doing this [training] right now. I’m going to help my family and get to impact lives with that platform. I think [football] is just setting me up for something else. It’s my hope and my dream, so I’m going to put everything into it. All of my eggs are in one basket.”
Whitaker said he has many traits that make him an attractive piece for an NFL team.
“What I bring to the locker room is leadership,” Whitaker said. “I’m someone who’s going to give it their all. I’m someone who loves football. I’m someone who is going to do his job. I’ll hold a double-team, stop the run or rush the passer. I think I’m NFL-bound and NFL-ready.”
Eguae said Whitaker would bring just as much to an NFL team off the field as he will on the field.
“Jeff is one of those guys who is just fun to be around,” Eguae said. “I know he’s going to get an opportunity. It’s tough when you go through and get a lot of injuries. But he’s healthy, and a healthy Jeff Whitaker is a baller on the football field. He’s a true nose tackle that can play in a 3-4 [defense] and that can legitimately close the middle for a defense. I personally don’t think it gets much better than Jeff. A team is going to get a steal.”
Whitaker said he still has goals to achieve in football and in life.
“My main dream, as far as football, is to live it to the fullest and be happy,” Whitaker said. “In life, I just want to be an instrument and let God use me to help the youth and anyone I can with my story and my trials and tribulations. I want to let them know that they can come through anything and overcome it.”
Whitaker said the biggest thing life has taught him is to never give up on a dream, no matter how many obstacles stand in the way.
“There are going to be struggles, there are going to be people that you have to leave by the wayside and there is going to be adversity,” Whitaker said. “But if you keep God first, you’ll never come in second. There’s a reason why you go through [adversity]. You owe it to yourself to not give up on your dream.”
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