It’s rare to see an Auburn football player be named a permanent team captain twice during his career.

In fact, it’s only happened 3 times in program history. That is, before Owen Pappoe saw his name to the list on Tuesday.

:Just want to thank my teammates for believing in me to help lead this team to go to the right place,” the linebacker said, according to Rivals.com affiliate AuburnSports. “I’m kind of at a loss of words, man. I’m really excited about it.”

The senior only played in 5 games in 2021, recording 23 tackles and 3.0 tackles for a loss. Despite that, he received a 3rd-team All-SEC nod from the league’s media following SEC Media Days.

Pappoe’s fellow captains are defensive lineman Derick Hall, an all-conference 1st-team pick by both the league’s media and coaches, and tight end John Samuel Shenker, a former Tigers baseball player that has been focusing exclusively on football over the past couple of seasons.

“We certainly talk about that in our meetings, how important leadership is. These guys exemplify that,” head coach Bryan Harsin said of his selections.

Auburn hosts FCS Mercer in its season opener on Sept. 3.