AUBURN, Ala. -- Last Thursday before Auburn’s season opener against Utah State, James Stallworth was in town, peppering his son, Travante, a Tigers wide receiver, with the usual fatherly questions.

How’s the leg? How are the nerves? How’s everything?

It was hard to tell who was more excited -- the son, who returned to a prominent role after an ACL injury cost him most of last season, or the father, a sergeant major in the Army finally able to cheer him on in person after getting back from his fourth and final tour overseas.

“It was real special because he hasn’t really seen me play that much,” Travante said.

It was a banner moment for the Stallworths as James and his wife, Jalaine, watched their son from the Jordan-Hare Stadium stands.

Travante gave them plenty to cheer about, catching four passes for 93 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown after making a nifty cutback near the goal line that showed his leg is 100 percent.

Afterward, he talked to his parents. Both of them, in person, a comforting feeling for someone accustomed to his dad being in a war zone some 7,000 miles away.

That’s been life for the Stallworths. James has been on on-and-off active duty over the last 25 years, starting as a private in the first Gulf War, going on peace-keeping missions in Bosnia and Kosovo and serving three tours in Iraq in the last decade.

When the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks occurred nearly 10 years ago, James knew what his job would require him to do.

“As soon as it happened, I met President (George) Bush at the time, we kind of knew what was going to happen after that,” James said. “When he tells us to rev up, we know where we’re going and what we’re doing. For a military person like myself it’s, ‘Hey, let’s get ready.’”

Travante and his family learned to deal with it over the years.

“I think it stings a lot, but my family is accustomed to it,” James said. “Not that they want me gone, but they’re used to the hustle and bustle and some of the things that we are required to do as soldiers. … It’s what we signed up for.”

Turning to mom

With James overseas, Jalaine, took care of the home front, handling parental duties for both Travante and his older sister, Kendra.

“Anything they need,” she said, “I’m always there.”

James was never more than an Internet connection away, chatting with his family on Skype and through e-mail on a daily basis, a bonus of being at war in this technological age.

The conversations never delved into the specifics of James’ job in Iraq, which included working patrols to keep the area stable during his earlier tours.

That was on purpose.

“He was doing some real work,” Travante said. “He never really talks about it with me. He doesn’t want us worrying.”

Still, Travante never feared for his dad’s safety.

“The military is just like football, really,” Travante said. “They practice, go out on missions and go to the field just like us. The difference is they get shot at, while we’re just out here getting hit. I knew he was safe over there. I had faith in God and trust in God. That basically just kept me going.”

Going through rehab

While James was on his final tour overseas, Travante was working his way back from a serious knee injury.

The receiver, a 2009 signee out of Leesville, La., showed promise as a freshman, appearing in 10 games. He found a role on end arounds, running twice for 22 yards against Ole Miss and once for 16 yards against Furman.

But in that Furman game he tore an ACL, an injury that ended his year and would bother him throughout the entire 2010 season, during which he only played against Arkansas State, Louisiana-Monroe and Chattanooga.

He was mostly a spectator during Auburn’s national championship run, which James watched from afar overseas, staying up until the wee hours of the morning to catch the Tigers’ games on a video stream set up by Jalaine.

Slowly but surely, however, Travante began to get healthy. Teammates took notice, especially this summer.

“I started running and a lot of guys were telling me, ‘Man, you’re looking back like your old self,’” he said. “That encouraged me a lot and made me feel great about myself.”

Sound technique

To the surprise of many, Travante won the starting job this August at inside receiver, a position played by Kodi Burns last year.

At 5-foot-9, 190 pounds, Travante might not be the most physically imposing receiver, but he’s smart about his alignment and sound in his technique.

“He doesn’t make mistakes,” wide receivers coach Trooper Taylor said. “Any time you hear a guy referred to as crafty, he’s a guy who’s going to play. … If one of those guys aren’t doing it right, I can stick him out there and he’ll take over for us.”

While Travante settles into his starting role, James will be there to watch it all.

He finished his final tour in June, returning to a supervisory role at Fort Stewart in Georgia. The Stallworths plan to move in December to Fort Benning, just a short drive from Auburn.

In between, they’ll attend every Tigers game they can, knowing with comfort that afterward James will only be headed home, not back overseas.

“That’s refreshing,” James said. “Nothing like getting up in the morning with no worries.”