By now you surely know about the fire at Toomer’s Corner following the LSU game. Late Saturday evening, the arsonist set a roll of toilet paper on fire hanging from one of the trees on Auburn’s Toomer’s Corner and was confronted after the act by a fast-acting student bystander.
“I was running right behind him past (BBVA) Compass (bank), that little parking lot right behind there,” said Herron Taylor, a junior, per AL.com. “I was screaming, ‘He lit it on fire, he lit it on fire’ and by that point all downtown was lit up from the tree it was just blazing flames. So everyone knew something bad had happened. When I was saying that all these guys kind of realized … it hit them. A few guys around me came and tackled him to the ground to hold him down.”
Alabama Lieutenant Governor Kay Ivey, an Auburn alum, wrote Taylor this hand-written letter:
“Your willingness to confront the man and your bravery in pursuing him speak volumes about your character,” Ivey wrote. “You are certainly a role model for people everywhere.”
And during his Tuesday press conference, Tigers coach Gus Malzahn also addressed the incident and gave credit to Taylor for her bravery to confront the man.
Gus on tree fire: "The lady who caught the guy had enough courage and guts to call him out. I hope they punish the guy big time."
— Jeff Shearer (@jeff_shearer) September 27, 2016
Gus Malzahn: On Toomer's Corner fire hopes they punish "the guy big time"
— WarEagleExtra (@wareagleextra) September 27, 2016
Kudos to Taylor for helping serve justice.
Tyler Waddell is a member of the Saturday Down South news team. He brings over five years of professional journalism experience and is closing in on a Bachelor's in sports management. Follow him on Twitter (@Tyler_Waddell).
