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Auburn LB Zakoby McClain signs NIL deal with Bojangles

Wade-Peeryby:Wade Peery•08/18/21
Zakoby McClain
(Photo by Mark LoMoglio/Icon Sportswire)

Auburn Tigers’ senior linebacker Zakoby McClain is known for making headlines on the football field, as he racked up 113 tackles in his 2020 season. Now he’s making headlines off the field with his recent Name, Image, and Likeness deal with Bojangles.

He announced the partnership on Wednesday on his Instagram page. In the video, McClain announces that he’s partnered with Bojangles’ and tells everyone about the new Bo’s chicken sandwich, while taking a bite of the sandwich. The Auburn linebacker joins his teammates, quarterback Bo Nix and running back Tank Bigsby as Bojangles’ partners.

Bojangles’ has been making a strong push to get a piece of the chicken sandwich pie here in America. Here’s a look at their Bo’s chicken sandwich, if curious.

Bojangles‘ has not been shy about partnering with several high-profile college football players. The company has recently signed deals with Heisman Trophy candidate quarterbacks: Clemson’s D.J. Uiagalelei and North Carolina’s Sam Howell.

McCLAIN’S LEGACY AT AUBURN

Zakoby McClain will finish his career on the Plains as one of the greatest linebackers ever to suit up at Auburn. He was left off any of the All-SEC teams last season, despite ranking third in the conference in overall tackles with 113.

Earlier this month, Pro Football Focus tweeted a graphic with the question, “Best Linebacker returning to CFB?” The top five players it listed were: Washington’s Edefaun Ulofoshio, LSU’s Mike Jones, Jr., Troy’s Jojo Domann, and Indiana’s Micah McFadden. McClain was not mentioned.

McClain didn’t say much in the off-season, but he did offer up the following tweet.

McClain has been getting much more attention in the media in the 2021 preseason. He and fellow Auburn linebacker Owen Pappoe were recently named to Cole Cubelic’s top 5 inside linebackers in the SEC.

McClain High School Career

McClain is listed at 6-foot-1, 219-pounds. He’s a native of Valdosta, Georgia and he went to Valdosta High School. The Georgia native was nominated for the US Army All-American Bowl coming out of high school, a game where the nation’s elite high school football prospects face off against each other. He was a tackling machine in high school as well, racking up 123 tackles and 20 tackles for loss as a junior. When he was a junior he also led Valdosta to a state championship. McClain was rated as a four-star prospect by ESPN, Rivals.com, and 247sports.com.

The Auburn Tigers kick off their 2021 season on September 4th against the Akron Zips. Kickoff is set for 7:00 PM EST.