I've been a Clemson fan since 1994. It was a fanhood given to me by my relatives in Anderson, SC. That's where my dad and his family were born. Although, at the time we lived in Georgia. I swam daily in a sea of Bulldogs and Yellow Jackets. My mama literally died with a UGA blanket draped over her lap. College football runs deep in the south. But as previously mentioned, I was corrupted early by my SC relatives. Not to mention, the colors and uniform looked awesome.
Since 1994 I've been a Tiger. Through distance, through terrible seasons, through wasted talent, through Clemson-ing, through ridicule, and through Tommy damn Bowden. We collectively suffered at the grip of mediocrity for more than 3 decades. But the last decade was ours. Finally. No one has ever respected Clemson, so no true Tiger fan expects the experts to respect us now. The argument against us has always been the same "Clemson doesn't play anybody." They may be right, but more times than not, we've beaten their favorite team, or whoever they thought would beat us. We hear it daily from Gamecock fans, but we've also heard it from Ohio State fans, Alabama fans, Georgia Fans, and pretty much all the fans.
But tonight, we play for the Natty for the 3rd time in 4 years. Enjoy it all Tiger fans. I'm sure you remember all the terrible years. Remember how happy this would have made you when we were 7-5. Remember that miserable feeling you got when FSU fans rubbed it in. Remember GT beating us with that damn option, making us look like fools. We've come a long way Clemson faithful. Remember to be proud of what we've done already, even if we fall short. We haven't fell far from the summit since we reached it. Appreciate the fight to stay at the summit. This is a big deal. This is an era of Clemson football we will tell children and grandchildren about. My point is, don't watch the game stressed out... We've accomplished more in 5 years than the program did in the last 30. Don't lose sight of that.
Soak it in. Remember every detail. Today is our day. Let's go bag us a Natty.