Note: The following appears in the South Carolina football gameday program.
Bubba McAtee, a senior safety and special teams player, is playing his fifth season for the Tigers and is suiting up for his final game against South Carolina. McAtee was exposed to Clemson’s football program almost immediately after birth.
“There are pictures of my parents and me at my first Clemson football game when I was around two weeks old. I grew up attending the games before moving to the state of Washington, but I still followed the team.”
McAtee returned to the Palmetto State before he started middle school, and since then, he always knew that he wanted to be a Tiger.
“I wanted to come to Clemson as a student from a young age, but once I knew I wanted to play football at the next level and once this opportunity was available to me, I knew it was a perfect fit.”
In the fall of 2020, McAtee joined the team as a walk-on after attending D.W. Daniel High School. He has played 21 career games as a Tiger, but has been hampered by injury this season.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in financial management in December, McAtee began pursuing his MBA, which he will complete this spring. He plans to pursue a career in investment banking or wealth management after his time at Clemson. He is also a P.A.W. Journey ambassador, which he said has helped with his job search.
When asked about his favorite memories as a Tiger, McAtee mentioned celebrating in the locker room after big wins and going on trips to bowl games.
“Especially after road games, enjoying a win with your teammates is always a lot of fun. Going on the bowl trips as well was always fun because you get to travel with your teammates and they plan many cool experiences for us wherever we travel.”
McAtee specifically mentioned the win at South Carolina and the Gator Bowl victory over Kentucky during the 2023 season as memorable moments.
When he is not on the gridiron, #39 likes to spend time with friends, mostly playing other sports.
“I like to stay active off the field. We play a lot of Spikeball, golf and pickup basketball, and we get out on the lake and fish as much as we can.”
Despite McAtee dealing with injuries in 2024, he still holds a positive attitude towards finishing strong.
“I’m excited to see how we finish out the season. We have a really good group of guys, and you never know how these next few weeks will play out.”
As his academic and football careers come to an end, McAtee said he has collected many takeaways and relationships that will prove to be very valuable in the future.
“Coach (Dabo) Swinney has given me notebooks worth of great quotes that I can take away from this experience. We have done a lot with mental strength and always having the mindset to keep moving forward regardless of the obstacles you face as well as the importance of a great work ethic.”
