By Movieguide® Staff
Former Auburn baseball player Mason Maners has traded the batter’s box for a new role with the Tigers, serving as team chaplain while Auburn chases a return to the College World Series.
“I think this team is also special in the way that a lot of our guys on our team are just all-in for Jesus,” sophomore pitcher Christian Chatterton said on Sports Spectrum’s “What’s Up?” Podcast. “I think a lot of that credit has to go to Mason, for sure.”
Auburn, the No. 4 national seed in the college baseball postseason, is preparing to host Ole Miss in a best-of-three Super Regional series this weekend. If the Tigers advance, it would mark the seventh College World Series appearance in program history.
Head Coach Butch Thompson leads Auburn on the field, but Maners has become one of the steady spiritual voices around the team. According to Sports Spectrum, current players have praised the former Auburn standout for creating space for Bible studies, honest conversations and a deeper walk with Christ.
Maners’ own story carries the kind of grace he now shares with players. His parents, Martin and Allison Maners, nicknamed him “Mustard Seed” as a child, a reference to Matthew 17:20 and a reminder of the faith they carried through multiple failed rounds of in vitro fertilization before his birth.
Years later, Maners nearly lost far more than his athletic future. During spring football practice his freshman year of high school in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, he suffered broken C-1 and C-2 vertebrae after making a tackle.
“As soon as I made the tackle, I felt a tingling, burning sensation go throughout my whole entire body,” Maners said in an Auburn-produced video. “I lost feeling in my feet and my hands.”
Related: Auburn Baseball Team Is ‘All-In for Jesus,’ Thanks to Their Chaplain
Doctors later told the family the injury was what is commonly known as a “Hangman’s break.” Maners said one wrong movement could have left him paralyzed or dead.
“Really by God’s grace and mercy, I didn’t look down or turn my head a certain way, because any minor movement or any of that could’ve caused me to be paralyzed or dead,” Maners said. “God’s hand was just over it the whole entire time.”
Maners healed, though doctors would not clear him to play football again. Baseball remained open, and he eventually began his college career at Jacksonville State before transferring to Auburn for the 2024 season.
As a senior, Maners hit .296 with seven home runs, 17 RBIs and seven stolen bases in seven attempts, according to Auburn Athletics. His playing career has ended, but his work with the program has not.
Junior infielder Ryne Farber said Maners’ ministry extends beyond formal Bible studies.
“Outside of team Bible studies, [Mason will] just come up and talk to you. He wants to know how you’re doing. He wants to know how your walk is going,” Farber said. “I think community is so important, and to have people that are all wanting to be great baseball players, but more importantly, be great people and grow toward the Lord is awesome.”
For Movieguide® readers, Maners’ story offers a simple reminder: athletics can be a platform, but it should never become the foundation. The young men in Auburn’s dugout are pursuing wins, but Maners is pointing them toward something steadier than a scoreboard.
Last June, Maners shared his gratitude for the chaplain role on Instagram.
“Serving as Chaplain for this team has been one of the greatest privileges and deepest joys,” he wrote. “I’ve been continually overwhelmed by the goodness and grace of the One who is faithful in every season.”
Auburn and Ole Miss opened Game 1 of the Super Regional on Friday.
Read Next: Faith and Success: How Auburn Baseball Star Finds Victory in Surrender
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