Sept. 30, 1896 – A small crowd gathered in one of the barracks rooms and discussed the advisability of organizing a football association and to devise some means of getting a coach. The organization, known as the Clemson College Football Association, was perfected and the following officers elected: President Frank Tompkins, Secretary & Treasurer Charlie Gentry, Manager T.R. Vogel, Temporary Captain Reuben Hamilton. A committee of three was appointed to consult Prof. Riggs as to management of a football team and to ask his aid as coach.
Oct. 5, 1896 – Practice began on campus on a 50’ x 200’ field in front of the college.
Oct. 31, 1896 – Clemson played its first football game, defeating Furman 14-6 in Greenville, S.C. It was the first time that many of the Clemson players had seen a full-sized football gridiron. Charlie Gentry was credited with scoring the Tigers’ first touchdown.
Nov. 21, 1896 – Clemson defeated Wofford 16-0. When the team arrived back on campus that night, the cadet corps along with faculty members led the team around in a buggy led by a torchlight procession and proceeded to go all over the campus. With this win, Clemson claimed the state title.
Nov. 10, 1897 – Clemson defeated South Carolina for the first time and won the school’s second state championship. A total of 2,000 spectators witnessed the 18-6 triumph. Clemson took an early 4-0 lead when South Carolina’s Lee Hagood fumbled on the Gamecock’s 31-yard line and Clemson’s William Brock caught the fumbled ball in the air and raced 30 yards for a touchdown.
Oct. 20, 1898 – The Tigers played their first home game against Bingham. Clemson won 55-0, as W.C. Forsythe kicked every PAT (11). R.T.V. Bowman, the man for whom the field at Clemson is named, was an assistant coach at that time with Clemson and helped referee the game.
Nov. 10, 1899 – The football association stood on a very weak financial basis. The organization could not even afford to hire a coach. W.M. Riggs agreed to coach the Tigers for free.
Dec. 8, 1899 – John Heisman was hired as head coach.
Oct. 22, 1900 – The Tigers defeated Wofford 21-0. Actually, Clemson scored many more points, but a pregame agreement between the two stated that every point Clemson scored after the first four touchdowns would not count. No one could keep an accurate count after Clemson scored its first 21 points after just six minutes elapsed. All touchdowns Clemson made were called back and the ball given to Wofford deep in Clemson territory on such penalties as running over a Wofford tackler.
Nov. 29, 1900 – Clemson’s 35-0 win over Alabama allowed John Heisman’s team to finish the year undefeated (6-0). It was Clemson’s first undefeated team and was the only team to win all of the games in a season until the 1948 squad went 11-0. Clemson won the SIAA Championship, its first conference title.
Oct. 5, 1901 – Clemson opened the season with a 122-0 win over Guilford, the most points scored in Tiger history. They averaged 30 yards per play and a touchdown every minute and 26 seconds. The first half lasted 20 minutes while the second half lasted only 10 minutes. Legend has it that every man on the team scored a touchdown in the game.
Oct. 30, 1902 – Col. Charles S. Roller Jr., who was football coach of Furman, was the only referee for the Clemson-South Carolina game. Bronco Armstrong, a famous Yale player and official, was to be the umpire, but was in a railroad wreck on the way to Clemson and it was impossible for him to get to the game in time. Not a single penalty was called in the game. A riot between Tiger and Gamecock fans broke out the night after the game. Officials at both colleges called off the football series between the two schools. Clemson and South Carolina did not meet again in football until 1909.
Nov. 27, 1902 – Clemson played in the snow for the first time in a game against Tennessee. The Tigers won the game 11-0 and claimed the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association crown, their second league title in three years.
Oct. 10, 1903 – Clemson beat Georgia 29-0. In the first 10 minutes, Clemson fumbled the ball three times. After the game, the Georgia team made a deal with the Clemson team. They would give the Clemson team a bushel of apples for every point Clemson would defeat Georgia Tech above the score Clemson made against Georgia. The score turned out to be Clemson 73, Georgia Tech 0. Apples were plentiful around Clemson that winter – 44 bushels.
Oct. 17, 1903 – Clemson defeated Georgia Tech 73-0. Clemson rushed the ball 55 times for 615 yards, still a school record, while Tech ran the ball 35 times and collected 28 yards. The second half was shortened to 15 minutes.
Oct. 28, 1903 – The Tigers defeated NC State 24-0 in Columbia, S.C. at the fairgrounds. One incident that delayed the start was the fact that the sideline spectators in their eagerness to see each play crowded in front of the grandstand and on the field. Twenty-minute halves were played, because the field had to be given to the racing association at 12:45 p.m. Even the short halves could not be played out and the time limit was up when 16 minutes of the second half had been played. Heisman married Evelyn Barksdale in Columbia after the game.
Nov. 26, 1903 – One day after Georgia Tech’s deadline for its offer had expired, John Heisman wired Georgia Tech President Lyman Hall that he would accept its offer of $2,250 per year plus 30 percent of net gate receipts at home games to coach its athletic teams.
Sept. 30, 1904 – Clemson began practice under new Head Coach Shack Shealy, who was at one time a great football player. He played varsity ball six years, four at Clemson and two at Iowa State. He is still the only Clemson graduate to serve as head coach of the Tiger football team.
Nov. 11, 1905 – The Clemson-Auburn game was called on account of darkness. Clemson won, 6-0.
Nov. 29, 1906 – Clemson’s first forward pass occurred in a 10-0 win over Georgia Tech. Powell Lykes dropped back to kick, but instead made a forward pass of 30 yards to George Warren.
Sept. 28, 1907 – The cadets of Clemson College braved wind and rain at Bowman Field to witness the Tigers in their earliest season-opener to date. Clemson met Gordon on a muddy field. Clemson was playing under new Head Coach Frank Shaughnessy.
Nov. 4-9, 1907 – Clemson played three games within a week’s time. Clemson lost to Auburn 12-0 on November 4 and lost to Georgia in Augusta, Ga. on November 7. The Tigers barely made it back in time to play Davidson at Clemson on November 9 and lost 10-6.
April 1, 1908 – Tiger football hopes of the 1908 season were shattered on this day, not by what happened in spring practice, but what 300 students did as a college prank on April Fools’ Day. The cadets were expelled for removing a Civil War cannon from the town square of Pendleton, four miles down the road from campus, and bringing the cannon back to Clemson. Many of the football stars, as well as many future stars, were among those who were expelled.
Oct. 2, 1915 – Clemson dedicated Riggs Field prior to a 6-6 tie with Davidson. Clemson would play its football games at the facility through 1941. It is now the home of Clemson’s soccer stadium.
Oct. 9, 1915 – The Tigers traveled to Knoxville, where they won fame by defeating the defending conference champion Tennessee, 3-0. Bill Harris drop-kicked a 20-yard field goal for the only score of the game in the fourth quarter. Tennessee was the defending champion of the SIAA.
Oct. 13, 1917 – Clemson downed Furman 38-0, as the Tigers’ Stumpy Banks scored five touchdowns, a record that still stands today.
Nov. 16, 1918 – The University of South Carolina athletic authorities provided the use of their stadium to Clemson and The Citadel for their annual game. South Carolina was playing at Furman that day and the field was not going to be used by the Gamecocks. The game was played at Columbia because the military officials from both schools would not allow players to be absent from any military duties due to athletic events. Since the game was played in Columbia, both school’s cadets and football teams were able to make the trip to Columbia and return to duty on time. Clemson’s John O’Dell scored the game’s only touchdown, as the Tigers won 7-0. Both teams made it back to their campuses before their passes expired.
Dec. 27, 1926 – Josh Cody was named head football coach at Clemson.
Sept. 19, 1928 – Clemson began this season with new uniforms. The Tigers wore a brilliant orange jersey for the first time, with black composition cloth stripes on the front with purple numbers.
Dec., 1928 – O.K. Pressley, a center, was named third-team All-American by the Newspaper Enterprise Association. He was Clemson’s first All-American in any sport.
May 6, 1929 – Josh Cody, Clemson head coach, was presented with a new automobile that afternoon as a gift from alumni, faculty, students and friends of the college. A special collection was taken up to purchase the new Buick. The presentation ceremony was staged in front of Tillman Hall.
Oct. 17, 1930 – Maxcey Welch scored five touchdowns (all rushing) in Clemson’s 75-0 win over Newberry. Welch and Stumpy Banks are the co-holders of that Clemson touchdown scoring record.
March 13, 1930 – Josh Cody signed a new contract to stay at Clemson through the 1932 season.
Nov. 26, 1930 – Josh Cody announced that the Furman game the next day will be his final as head coach.
Nov. 27, 1930 – Clemson defeated Furman 12-7 at Furman to conclude the Tigers third straight eight-win season, the only eight-win seasons in Clemson history between 1896 and 1938. The 1930 Tigers concluded the season with an 8-2 record and posted four shutouts. In fact, only Tennessee and Florida scored over a touchdown against the Tigers in this season.
Nov. 29, 1930 – The Tiger student newspaper published an extra edition about Coach Cody, hoping to convince him to remain as coach. Cody had become a popular mentor because of his 29-11-1 record, including a perfect 4-0 record against South Carolina, the only coach in Clemson history to have a perfect ledger against the Gamecocks (miniumum four games).
Jan. 2, 1931 – After reconsidering his decision for over a month, Cody made his resignation final. He went on to be a football coach and men’s basketball coach at Temple.
Jan. 17, 1931 – Jess Neely was named head football coach at Clemson. He was the second consecutive Vanderbilt graduate to coach the Tigers. Cody was a 1917 graduate of Vanderbilt and Neely graduated in 1923. In fact, eight of the nine Clemson head football coaches between 1931-98 were graduates of current SEC schools.
Oct. 16, 1931 – Clemson suffered a surprising 6-0 loss against The Citadel in a game played in Florence, S.C. After the game, Neely, Captain Frank Jervey and others met in a car outside the stadium to discuss ways Clemson could help its football program get back on track. The meeting started the ball rolling towards the establishment of the IPTAY Foundation. Clemson would score just three touchdowns and win one game during the 1931 season.
Oct. 14, 1933 – Clemson played at George Washington in a 0-0 tie. This was the first time Clemson played under the lights. Fans followed the game on a grid graph in Tillman Hall at the Clemson chapel. A grid graph was an electrical machine that was marked off like a football field. Lights were so arranged on the graph that every possible play was flashed on the board. The lineups of both teams were written on the sides and the man carrying the ball on each play had a light flashed by his name. Another light representing the runner moved along the board in the same direction and for the same distance as the runner.
Aug. 20, 1934 – IPTAY, the nation’s first scholarship fundraising organization, was founded. Dr. Rupert Fike, a cancer specialist from Atlanta and Clemson class of 1908, wrote Jess Neely a letter documenting the formation of the organization. “Last night we had a little meeting out at my house and organized the IPTAY Club,” Fike wrote. “The purpose (of IPTAY) shall be to provide financial support to the athletic department at Clemson and to assist in every other way possible to regain for Clemson the high athletic standing which rightfully belongs to her.” The organization was first established as a secret organization and initial membership dues were set at $10 a year. Many had suggested that $50 be the minimum donation, but Fike’s foresight thought it would be best to get as many supporters involved as possible, so he established the $10 minimum. The excitement about the organization carried over into the 1934 season and the Tigers ran to their first winning season since 1930. Clemson had gone 0-5-1 against Furman and South Carolina during those years, then defeated both teams in 1934.
Nov. 19, 1935 – Clemson held its first night football practice. Two powerful floodlights were installed at the practice fields. The Clemson coaches wanted more practice time with the players and that was the reason the lights were brought in. The extra practice did not pay off however, as Clemson lost its final game that year to Furman, 8-6.
Nov. 17, 1937 – Clemson defeated Florida in Gainesville by a 10-9 score. Don Willis scored Clemson’s only TD of the game on a one-yard run that culminated a 65-yard drive on Clemson’s opening possession. Later Clemson gave up a safety and a touchdown, so Florida led 9-7 heading into the fourth quarter. But, the Tigers drove 60 yards late in the game and Ben Pearson booted a 27-yard field goal to win the game. At the time, it gave Clemson a 4-4 record in 1937, but it proved to be a program builder, much as Clemson’s win over South Carolina in 1980 did. The Tigers posted to a 22-2-2 record over a 26-game period that started with that win at Florida. Clemson’s only losses in that 26-game period were to Tennessee in 1938 and Tulane in 1939. Tennessee ended the 1938 season with a 10-0 record and ranked second in the nation, while Tulane ended the 1939 season with an 8-0-1 mark and fifth in the country.
Nov. 5, 1938 – Clemson scored with big plays in a win over George Washington, 27-0. The Tigers scored three touchdowns on plays of at least 65 yards, the first time in history Clemson had scoring plays of that distance in the same game. Banks McFadden ran 70 yards for a score on the first Clemson play from scrimmage. Later, Shad Bryant scored on a 65-yard punt return and on a 65-yard run off a lateral. George Washington actually had more first downs, 15-13, yet lost by 27 points.
Sept. 23, 1939 – Banks McFadden ran 90 yards for a touchdown in Clemson’s 18-0 win over Presbyterian. It is still tied for the longest run in Clemson history. McFadden had a career high 173 yards in 15 attempts on this day.
Sept. 30, 1939 – Clemson suffered its only loss of the season to a revenge minded Tulane 11. The Tigers had beaten the Green Wave the previous year by a 13-10 score. This season, however, Tulane defeated Clemson 7-6. Despite the loss, it was a game that brought acclaim to Clemson for its ability to play so close with the team that would end the year ranked fifth in the nation. McFadden was all over the field on this day, throwing for Clemson’s only touchdown and defending enemy passes from the secondary. His punting kept Tulane bottled up in their own territory. He had 12 punts for 504 yards, including a record six punts of at least 50 yards. Unfortunately, he was involved in what proved to be the game’s deciding play, as his extra point attempt after Clemson’s only touchdown was blocked.
Oct. 19, 1939 – Clemson outgained South Carolina 402-90 in a 27-0 win. Banks McFadden threw for 85 yards and rushed for 76 in just 14 attempts.
Oct. 26, 1939 – Clemson showed it was a deep enough team to win without All-American Banks McFadden, who missed the Navy game with an injury. Shad Bryant had a 40-yard run for a score in Clemson’s 15-7 win at Annapolis.
Nov. 3, 1939 – Clemson won in the Washington, D.C. area for the second straight week, defeating George Washington, 13-6. Bryant had 127 yards rushing and scored Clemson’s only touchdown. The game was played on a Friday evening.
Nov. 11, 1939 – McFadden completed just four passes against Wake Forest, but three were to Joe Blalock for 105 yards, the first 100-yard receiving game in Tiger history. It was the final home game for McFadden and the rest of the Tiger seniors.
Nov. 13, 1939 – Clemson was ranked in the AP poll for the first time. The Tigers beat Wake Forest 20-7 to improve to 6-1. Clemson had 33 poll points on that November 13 ranking and one first-place vote out of the 85 votes in the poll that week. Clemson remained in the top 20 over the next three weeks and each week Clemson had exactly one first-place vote. However, in the final poll, even though Clemson had run the table to finish 8-1 in the regular season, that individual failed to vote Clemson No. 1, as the Tigers did not have a first-place vote in the December 11 (final) poll.
Nov. 18, 1939 – Clemson won away from home for the fourth straight time, a 21-6 win over Rhodes. Banks McFadden and George Floyd combined for 126 yards rushing.
Nov. 25, 1939 – Clemson concluded its 8-1 regular season with a 14-3 victory over Furman. Shad Bryant ran for 94 yards and gained 75 more in punt returns. McFadden scored two touchdowns and had 10 punts for a 42-yard average, intercepted a pass and completed a pass.
Dec. 8, 1939 – Clemson accepted a bid to play in the Cotton Bowl. It was Clemson’s first postseason bowl game appearance. Clemson did meet Cumberland in a postseason “Championship of the South” game in 1903, but it was not considered an established bowl.
Dec. 11, 1939 – Clemson ranked 12th in the final poll by the Associated Press, Clemson’s first appearance in a final season AP poll. The Tigers had 112 poll points, just behind Boston College, who had 120.5 poll points for 11th place. Clemson would defeat Boston College in the Cotton Bowl, but the AP did not have a poll after the bowls. In fact, for whatever the reason, the AP did not have a final poll after the bowls until after the 1968 season. Thus, Clemson actually would have had a much higher ranking by today’s standards if there would have been a poll in January 1940.
Dec. 15, 1939 – Banks McFadden was named a first-team All-American by AP and a third-team selection by UPI. He was the first Clemson player honored by the AP. Later that year he was named the Nation’s Most Versatile Athlete for 1939. Earlier in the year he had led Clemson to the 1939 Southern Conference Championship in basketball, still the only postseason championship in Clemson history.
Jan. 1, 1940 – In Clemson’s first bowl appearance, it defeated Boston College 6-3. Charlie Timmons scored the game’s lone touchdown from two yards out and rushed for 115 yards. Banks McFadden keyed the defense with four pass deflections of Boston College passes and he also averaged 43 yards per punt. Boston College drove to the Clemson eight with three minutes left, but Shad Bryant and McFadden knocked away third and fourth-down passes to save the day for the Tigers.
“Clemson is every bit as good as they were cracked up to be,” said Boston College Coach Frank Leahy, still the second winningest coach in college football history on a percentage basis. “We lost to a great team, one of the best I have ever seen. I have the satisfaction of knowing that while we were beaten, the game wasn’t lost on a fluke.”
Jan. 10, 1940 – Jess Neely resigned as athletic director and football coach to accept the head football coaching job at Rice. Neely had inherited a $47,000 deficit when he arrived in 1931 and earned Clemson $100,000 during his tenure, and left with $57,000 in the treasury. His overall record at Clemson was 43-35-7. He would be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Jan. 11, 1940 – Frank Howard was named head coach. At the Athletic Council meeting that day, Howard was nominated for the position by Professor Sam Rhodes, a council member. When a call for a second was asked, Howard, standing in the back of the room, said: “I second the nomination.” It is perhaps the only recorded time in history a coach has seconded his own nomination for head coach.
July 25, 1940 – Banks McFadden accepted a bid to play in the College All-Star game against the Green Bay Packers on August 29. He scored one of the two touchdowns for the College All-Stars.
Sept. 1, 1940 – Banks McFadden signed a one-year contract to play with the Brooklyn Dodgers professional football team. He led the NFL in yards per carry in 1940, but did not like the bright lights of New York and returned to Clemson.
Sept. 21, 1940 – In Frank Howard’s first game as head coach, Clemson scored on the first offensive play as George Floyd reversed around left end and raced 18 yards untouched for a touchdown. The Tigers went on to a 38-0 win over Presbyterian.
Oct. 12, 1940 – Clemson shutout Wake Forest 39-0 in Clemson’s second game of the season at Riggs Field. It was Clemson’s third shutout in the first four games of the Howard era. It was the last home game of the season for the Tigers, who would go on to win the Southern Conference title even though seven of the nine games were on the road.
Oct. 24, 1940 – Frank Howard won his first game as head coach in the rivalry with South Carolina. The Tigers were victorious 21-13 thanks to five interceptions by the Tiger defense. Howard coached in 30 Clemson-South Carolina games. Incredible as it may seem, both Clemson and South Carolina scored exactly 411 total points in those 30 games.
Oct. 28, 1940 – It didn’t take Howard long to get the Tigers into the nation’s top 10. With the 5-0 start the Tigers earned 136 poll points and ranked No. 10 in the nation, Clemson’s first top-10 ranking in the AP poll. Two writers ranked Clemson No. 1.
Nov. 23, 1940 – Clemson won the Southern Conference title with a 13-7 win over Furman. Ed Maness led the way for the Tigers with 136 yards rushing on 18 carries. It was the first of eight conference titles for the Tigers under Frank Howard.
Oct. 6, 1941 – Work began on Memorial Stadium. The chore of cleaning, digging and leveling the site as well as cutting large trees and clearing underbrush was supervised by Frank Howard. A pipe was also installed for drainage under the field.
Oct. 11, 1941 – Clemson defeated Boston College at Fenway Park, 26-13. Joe Blalock scored two touchdowns as Clemson overcame a 6-0 deficit after the first quarter. BC outgained Clemson 363-281, but Clemson came away with the victory.
Oct. 23, 1941 – Booty Payne became the first Clemson player to pass for over 200 yards in an 18-14 loss to South Carolina. He completed 9-16 passes for 202 yards in the contest. It was one of just three 200-yard passing games by a Tiger in the decade of the 1940s.
Nov. 15, 1941 – Clemson defeated Wake Forest, 29-0, in the last game at Riggs Field.
Nov. 22, 1941 – The Tigers put on the greatest rushing defense exhibition in the first 100 years of Clemson history, holding Furman to -21 yards rushing in a 34-6 win in Greenville. Charlie Timmons scored three touchdowns and added four extra points in his final game as a Tiger. But Timmons was not the leading rusher in the game, as teammate Sid Tinsley picked up 127 yards on just seven carries.
Sept. 19, 1942 – Memorial Stadium opened and the Tigers ran down the Hill for the first time. Butch Butler gained 192 yards, as the Tigers opened the new stadium in front of 5,500 with a 32-13 win over Presbyterian. It was the most yards rushing by a Tiger in the decade of the 1940s. High school students were admitted for 25 cents, while servicemen were allowed in for 50 cents.
Sept. 25, 1943 – World War II took virtually all of Clemson’s veteran players and the Tigers started nine first-year freshmen at the 11 positions in a 13-12 loss to Presbyterian. Clemson had just a 2-6 record this season with no one older than a sophomore playing in a game as the armed services took Clemson’s entire junior and senior classes.
Oct. 19, 1944 – First rain at a Clemson-South Carolina game since 1896. Despite the conditions, Sid Tinsley rushed for 146 yards in 22 carries to lead the Tigers to a 20-13 victory.
Sept. 22, 1945 – Fourteen Clemson backs netted 516 yards in a 76-0 victory over Presbyterian. Freshman Bobby Gage led the Tigers with 144 yards, including 88 yards on a touchdown run, the longest run from scrimmage by a Tiger in the decade of the 1940s. The Tigers had 11 rushing touchdowns in the game, still a Clemson record.
Oct. 24, 1946 – The Clemson vs. South Carolina game was played under unusual circumstances. Counterfeit tickets had been printed and 10,000 more people than the capacity showed up for the game. Fans stormed the gates and stood on the sidelines, even on the field at the opposite end of the field when the game action was taking place. Coach Howard recalled fans standing next to him on the sideline telling him what plays to run. South Carolina won on this bizarre day, 26-14.
Sept. 24, 1947 – Clemson flew to Boston College on an Eastern Airline DC-4. It marked the first time that a state football team had flown to a football game. The quicker traveling did not help, however as Boston College defeated the Tigers, 32-22.
Nov. 8, 1947 – Clemson began a 15-game winning streak, the longest in school history at the time, with a win over Furman, 35-7.
Nov. 22, 1947 – Bobby Gage ran for 141 yards and passed for 233 as he led Clemson to a 34-18 win over Auburn. Gage threw four touchdown passes and had 374 yards total offense, records that stood almost 50 years. Hank Walker was Gage’s favorite receiver as he pulled in 10 passes for 148 yards. It was the first time in Clemson history that the Tigers had a 100-yard rusher, a 100-yard receiver and a 200-yard passer in the same game. The Clemson defense was also outstanding, holding Auburn to -9 yards rushing.
June 1, 1948 – Frank Gillespie was named the Southern Conference Athlete-of-the-Year. He played football, basketball and baseball during the academic year and was the first Tiger athlete to be named a conference athlete of the year.
Sept. 25, 1948 – Clemson beat Presbyterian 53-0 in the first night game at Clemson. Clemson also defeated NC State 6-0 in a home night game the following week.
Oct. 2, 1948 – Gage continued his All-America triple-threat season by returning a punt 90 yards for a touchdown in Clemson’s 6-0 win over NC State at Death Valley. It was the longest punt return at Memorial Stadium until 2006.
Oct. 21, 1948 – A No. 14 Tiger team beat South Carolina 13-7 in Columbia. Captain Phil Prince was the hero for the Tigers as he blocked a South Carolina punt with just 4:15 left in the contest. Oscar Thompson recovered it at the 11 and ran it in for a touchdown, giving Clemson the 13-7 lead.
Nov. 6, 1948 – Bobby Gage put on the most efficient passing exhibition in Clemson history in a 41-0 win over Furman. He completed 9-11 passes for 245 yards and two touchdowns. His efficiency rating of 310.7 is still a Clemson record for a minimum of 10 attempts. He averaged 22 yards per attempt, a record by far in Clemson history. The defense was just as effective, holding the Paladins to -12 yards in total offense, still the best total defense effort in Clemson history for a single game.
Nov. 22, 1948 – The Tigers were ranked No. 9 in the AP poll, their highest ranking in history. Eight voters ranked Clemson No. 1 in the nation.
Nov. 27, 1948 – Clemson accepted a bid to play in the Gator Bowl after it beat Auburn 7-6 in a hard fought game played in Mobile, Ala. It was Clemson’s first bowl bid since the 1939 season. Ray Mathews scored on a one-yard run with just 6:35 left to give Clemson its only lead of the game.
Nov. 29, 1948 – Clemson ranked 11th in the final AP poll. Again Clemson suffered from not having a poll after the bowl games. Clemson won another regular season game, then defeated Missouri in the Gator Bowl to close a perfect season. But, these wins were not reflected in the final ranking. The AP did not have a post-bowl poll until 1968.
Dec. 4, 1948 – Clemson closed out its perfect regular season with a 20-0 win over The Citadel in a game played in Charleston. The December 4 date is the second-latest regular season game in Clemson history. The 10th ranked Tigers did not allow The Citadel to make a first down in the game, the only recorded time in Clemson history that the Tigers did not allow a first down. The Bulldogs also failed to complete a pass in the contest. The victory was Clemson’s sixth road win of the year, a record that still stands for road wins in a regular season. Only six Clemson teams have had a perfect road record since 1948, and that was the 1981 national championship team and the 1995 Tigers as well as the 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019 squads.
Dec. 6, 1948 – Frank Howard was named Southern Conference Coach of the Year, his first of three Coach of the Year selections in his career.
Jan. 1, 1949 – The Tigers won the Gator Bowl by a 24-23 score over Missouri. Fred Cone scored two first-quarter touchdowns as Clemson raced to a 14-0 lead. After Missouri tied the game, Gage threw a nine-yard scoring pass to John Poulos, a play that completed a 80-yard drive. Jack Miller’s 32-yard field goal in the fourth quarter proved to be the winning margin. Missouri would score a late touchdown to come within 24-23. But that was the final score. You could not go for two points in those days, so Missouri did not have the opportunity to tie the score after their touchdown that took place with less than five minutes left. Both teams had exactly 298 yards of total offense in the game. Clemson closed the season with a perfect 11-0 record, the only team in college football with 11 wins that year and one of just three with a perfect record. Notre Dame and Michigan were both 9-0-0 that season, but did not play in a bowl game.
Nov. 26, 1949 – Clemson closed out the decade of the 1940s with a 20-20 tie against Auburn in Mobile, Ala. Clemson had just a 4-4-2 record but closed 2-0-1 over the last three games, giving the program momentum heading into the 1950 season.
Sept. 30, 1950 – Clemson beat Missouri 34-0 in the second game of the season. The Tigers of Columbia had been ranked in the preseason top 20. Three Tiger backs rushed for at least 100 yards, the second straight game Frank Howard had three 100-yard rushers in a game. It has happened just seven times in Clemson history.
Oct. 7, 1950 – Clemson recorded its third-straight shutout to open the season with a 27-0 win over NC State in a home night game. Wyndie Windham again led the Clemson defense in tackles and according to legend knocked out NC State players on three consecutive plays in this game.
Oct. 28, 1950 – Clemson defeated Wake Forest in Winston-Salem in a battle of top 20 teams, 13-12. Clemson lineman Bob Patton blocked the extra point in the final minute to preserve the victory for Clemson. It is the only time in Clemson history that a Tiger has blocked a kick on the last play of the game to give Clemson a victory.
Nov. 28, 1950 – Clemson accepted a bid to play in the Orange Bowl.
Jan. 1, 1951 – Clemson appeared in the Orange Bowl for the first time and squeaked out a 15-14 win over Miami (Fla.) to complete an undefeated season. Sterling Smith’s tackle of Frank Smith in the endzone gave Clemson a safety with under six minutes left in the game and gave the Tigers the victory. Don Wade also had two interceptions in the game. It was Clemson’s second undefeated season in the last three years for Howard’s Tigers.
Nov. 27, 1951 – Clemson accepted a bid to play in the Gator Bowl. This was done against the wishes of the Southern Conference, who had made a rule its members could not go to a bowl game. Clemson and Maryland, which both accepted bowl bids were given sanctions. The two teams were told they will not be allowed to play any other conference teams in 1952. This resulted in teams leaving the Southern Conference and forming the ACC.
Nov. 8, 1952 – Don King, making his first and only career start at tailback, rushed for 234 yards on 33 carries in Clemson’s 12-12 tie at Fordham. The performance is still a record for a Clemson freshman and still stands as the third-highest single-game total in Clemson history. King, who had 240 rushing yards in the first half and -6 in the second half, was substituting for injured tailback Billy Hair and returned to quarterback the next week. He never played tailback again.
May 8, 1953 – Clemson joined the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Oct. 31, 1953 – Clemson won its first ACC game in history, 18-0 over Wake Forest in a contest played at Clemson.
Sept. 18, 1954 – Clemson Head Cheerleader George Bennett fired a cannon after each Tiger score. The cannon was purchased by Bennett’s father and the tradition is still carried out today.
Oct. 9, 1954 – Clemson upset 14th ranked Florida in Jacksonville, 14-7.
Nov. 16, 1956 – Vice President Richard Nixon was in attendance at the Clemson-Miami football game on this date. Surrounded by security from various agencies, a loud explosion sounded and alarmed the body guard along with the Vice President. To everyone’s relief, it was discovered that it was just the cannon fired off by a Clemson cheerleader when Clemson kicked off. The eighth-ranked Hurricanes defeated the Tigers 21-0 in the game played at Miami, Fla.
Nov. 24, 1956 – The Tigers defeated Virginia 7-0 at Clemson to clinch their first ACC championship.
Dec. 1, 1956 – Clemson clinched an Orange Bowl berth with a 28-7 win over Furman at Clemson.
Jan. 1, 1957 – Colorado defeated Clemson 27-21 in an Orange Bowl. Clemson had trailed 20-0 at the half and Frank Howard threatened to resign at halftime. But, the Tigers came back to take a 21-20 lead in fourth quarter, only to see the Buffaloes score late to win the game.
March 25, 1957 – It was announced that Clemson and South Carolina would play at Clemson on Nov. 12, 1960 ending the 61-year-old state classic, Big Thursday. The announcement was made on Frank Howard’s birthday.
Sept. 20, 1958 – Clemson ran down the hill on a rug for the first time. The rug was officially given to Clemson on this date before the Clemson-Virginia game by W.W. Pate Sr., president of Wunda Weave Company. It measured 104 feet long and was 13 feet wide. Also at this game, Clemson’s first expansion of Memorial Stadium was used for the first time. Memorial Stadium was expanded from 20,000 to 38,000 seats.
Sept. 27, 1958 – Clemson defeated North Carolina 26-21, as Frank Howard picked up his 100th collegiate coaching win. Doug Cline scored on a two-yard run with 2:52 left to give Clemson the win. It was one of four times in 1958 that Clemson scored a touchdown in the last quarter to win the game. Also the scoreboard at the east of the stadium was used for the first time. The scoreboard had an added feature, as the Tiger above the scoreboard still wags his tail after each Clemson touchdown.
Oct. 6, 1958 – Clemson was ranked eighth in the country, the highest ranking in Clemson history, at that time.
Oct. 11, 1958 – Clemson kept its top 10 ranking alive with a 12-7 win at Vanderbilt. Harvey White scored the game winner on a three-yard run with three seconds left to win the game. It is the second-latest, game-winning touchdown in regulation in Tiger history.
Nov. 19, 1958 – Clemson defeated NC State 13-6 and won its second ACC championship in three years.
Nov. 29, 1958 – Clemson accepted a Sugar Bowl bid to face top-ranked LSU.
Dec. 24, 1958 – It was announced that Clemson would take the rug that the Tigers used to run down the Hill prior to home games with them to the Sugar Bowl. The rug weighed 527 pounds.
Dec. 27, 1958 – Clemson announced it would wear navy blue jerseys with wide numerals front and back. Orange helmets with a white stripe from back to front in the center would also be worn to give a contrasting color for the nationwide television coverage of the game.
Jan. 1, 1959 – Top-ranked LSU and future Heisman Trophy winner Billy Cannon beat Clemson 7-0 in the Sugar Bowl. Cannon, a halfback, threw a touchdown pass to give LSU and Paul Dietzel the national championship clinching victory. It was the first time Clemson had ever played the No. 1 team.
Sept. 19, 1959 – Clemson defeated North Carolina in Chapel Hill 20-18 in a battle of top-20 teams. The Tar Heels were ranked No. 12 in the preseason poll.
Oct. 22, 1959 – Clemson won the last Big Thursday game by defeating South Carolina 27-0. Harvey White was on target all day, hitting 9-10 passes for 162 yards and two scores. Clemson fans tore down the steel goal posts, which were set in concrete, following the game.
Nov. 21, 1959 – Clemson defeated Wake Forest 33-31 for Clemson’s second ACC title in a row. George Usry scored on a one-yard run with 4:24 to go to give Clemson the triumph.
Dec. 19, 1959 – Clemson beat TCU in the Bluebonnet Bowl 23-7. The Horned Frogs, led by All-American and future Dallas Cowboy Bob Lilly, were ranked No. 7 in the nation entering the game. It was the highest-ranked team Frank Howard defeated in his 30 years as head coach.
Oct. 1, 1960 – The west stands were used for the first time, as Clemson beat Virginia Tech, 13-7.
Oct. 8, 1960 – Clemson defeated Virginia 21-7 and used special pants for rain protection in this game. After the contest, Clemson sent the pants to Greenville and allowed Furman to use the pants for a game that night against William & Mary. Furman Head Coach Bob King said, “after those big Clemson boys got out of them some of our guys had a hard time making them stay up and we had to tape the legs of the pants for several players.” The pants beat two teams from Virginia on the same day.
Nov. 12, 1960 – Clemson defeated South Carolina by the score of 12-2 in the first ever appearance for South Carolina at Clemson.
Nov. 11, 1961 – A team resembling Clemson entered the field prior to the meeting with South Carolina. They did a few serious calisthenics and then started dancing to band music. The team was actually members of the Sigma Nu Fraternity of South Carolina. Clemson students entered the field and worked some of the imposters over. Finally state police brought order to the field.
Oct. 13, 1962 – Hal Davis raced 98 yards with a kickoff return for a touchdown against Georgia, the last time a Tiger would return a kickoff for a score for 25 years.
Nov. 17, 1962 – Clemson upset Maryland as Rodney Rogers kicked a 23-yard field goal with 84 seconds left in the game.
Nov. 24, 1962 – Clemson beat South Carolina, as Rogers kicked a 24-yard field goal with 1:31 left. The Tigers wore blue jerseys in this game, the ones that were used in the Sugar Bowl. Clemson claimed the 20-17 victory when South Carolina quarterback Dan Reeves was sacked deep in Tiger territory on the last play of the game.
Oct. 12, 1963 – Clemson and Georgia tied 7-7, but the main item of interest was the strange weather. A hail storm hit at 2:50 p.m. and caused temperatures to plummet from 84 degrees to 57 degrees in 45 minutes. Almost an inch of hail poured in a 20-minute period and the game was delayed. Clemson blocked two field goal attempts to preserve the tie.
Nov. 23, 1963 – The South Carolina-Clemson game was postponed due to the death of President John F. Kennedy.
Nov. 28, 1963 – Clemson defeated South Carolina on Thanksgiving Day, 24-20. It was the fifth win in a row for the Tigers to close the season.
Nov. 6, 1965 – Two Clemson single-game records were established in a 17-13 loss at North Carolina. Thomas Ray became the first Tiger to throw for 300 yards in a game when he completed 21-43 passes for 323 yards. His star receiver, Phil Rogers, caught 11 passes for 129 yards to set the single-game reception record.
Sept. 24, 1966 – First game in which Howard’s Rock was present at Death Valley. Clemson downed Virginia, 40-35 in one of the most exciting games in the history of the facility and adding to the legend of Howard’s Rock. Clemson trailed 35-17 with just over a quarter remaining in the game, but rode the passing of Jimmy Addison to keep its perfect record alive against Virginia. Addison was 12-19 for 283 yards and three touchdowns, including a 74-yarder to Jackie Jackson with 3:49 remaining that proved to be the game-winner.
Oct. 22, 1966 – Clemson traveled to Los Angeles to play Southern Cal for the first time. This was the longest trip for a Clemson football team at the time. The Trojans won the Pac-8 that year, won the Rose Bowl and defeated Clemson 30-0. Clemson visited Universal Studios prior to the game and had their photos taken with many of the television stars of the era.
Nov. 12, 1966 – Frank Howard won his 150th game and clinched at least a tie for the ACC championship with a 14-10 victory over Maryland. Clemson won the ACC outright the next week with a 6-1 record. Clemson was 0-3 outside the league in 1966 and all three of the games were against top 10 teams (Georgia Tech, Alabama, Southern California).
Nov. 26, 1966 – Clemson downed South Carolina 35-10 to win the ACC title. A key touchdown in the game was scored by Tiger offensive lineman Harry Olszewski, who picked up a mid-air fumble and ran 12 yards for a touchdown.
Sept. 23, 1967 – Clemson started the tradition of rubbing Howard’s Rock when running down the hill. Clemson responded with a 23-6 win over Wake Forest.
Oct. 28, 1967 – Alabama and Bear Bryant came to Clemson to face Frank Howard’s Tigers before a sellout crowd at Clemson. Bryant’s team won the close game, 13-10.
Nov. 18, 1967 – Clemson painted its shoes orange for the NC State game and the Tigers upset the No. 10 Wolfpack 14-6. Clemson clinched a tie for the ACC championship with the victory, the sixth and final ACC title of Frank Howard’s celebrated career. The Tigers had to get the orange paint from eight stores in the area. NC State’s defense had worn white shoes all season and that was the reason for the ploy.
Nov. 25, 1967 – Clemson beat South Carolina 23-12 to claim the ACC Championship. Buddy Gore broke the ACC single-season rushing record with 1,045 yards and finished the season eighth in the nation in rushing.
Sept. 28, 1968 – Richie Luzzi returned a missed field-goal try 108 yards (100 officially) for a touchdown, the longest play in Tiger history. The victory was Bear Bryant’s 100th at Alabama.
Oct. 25, 1969 – Danny Ford was one of the Alabama captains for the Clemson-Alabama game at Clemson. Bob Hope was in town for a homecoming show that night. Bear Bryant’s team defeated Clemson 38-13. Clemson lost by a sizeable margin, but moved the ball consistently. In fact, Clemson had a 200-yard passer, 100-yard rusher and 100-yard receiver for just the fourth time. After the game, Ford took the “100” sticker off his helmet and stuck it on a football and presented it to Bryant in the locker room.
Nov. 1, 1969 – Frank Howard won his last game as a Clemson coach in Death Valley with a 40-0 win over Maryland. It is still Clemson’s largest margin of victory against the Terrapins.
Dec. 10, 1969 – Frank Howard resigned from football coaching duties, but remained in the capacity of athletic director. Howard had first come to Clemson in 1931 as an assistant under Jess Neely.
Dec. 17, 1969 – Hootie Ingram was named head football coach.
July 21, 1970 – Clemson announced the use of a new logo…the Tiger Paw. With the aid of Henderson Advertising Agency, the Tiger Paw became the new trademark of Clemson athletics.
Oct. 31, 1970 – Don Kelley had the greatest return game in ACC history when he gained 223 yards on interception and punt returns in a 24-11 win over Maryland. He had a record 167 yards in punt returns, including an 85-yarder for a touchdown, and also had a 56-yard interception return.
Oct. 9, 1971 – Hootie Ingram gained his only win over a ranked team as Clemson coach when the Tigers defeat Duke 3-0 in a defensive struggle at the Oyster Bowl in Norfolk, Va. Duke was ranked 14th in the nation entering the contest.
Nov. 27, 1971 – Eddie Seigler became the first Clemson kicker in history to boot a field goal of at least 50 yards. His 52-yarder was important in the 17-7 Clemson win over South Carolina.
Dec. 5, 1972 – Hootie Ingram resigned as head coach and Red Parker was named as his replacement.
Sept. 28, 1974 – Georgia Tech made its first appearance in history at Clemson. For years, Clemson had played in Atlanta. Clemson won the contest 21-17.
Oct. 5, 1974 – Clemson defeated Georgia in Death Valley, 28-24, giving Clemson wins over Georgia and Georgia Tech in the same season for the first time since 1914.
Nov. 16, 1974 – The playing surface of Memorial Stadium was named Frank Howard Field. This day also featured the longest play in Clemson history, a 97-yard touchdown pass from Mark Fellers to Craig Brantley. Clemson defeated Virginia, 28-9.
Nov. 23, 1974 – Clemson beat South Carolina 39-21 to close a perfect 6-0 season at home. Ken Callicutt had 197 yards rushing and 55 more receiving to key the attack. It was a Clemson record for all-purpose rushing at the time. South Carolina players wore two different color helmets in the game, as the Gamecock seniors wore black helmets and the rest of the team wore white. Willie Anderson had 21 tackles from his middle guard position, still a Tiger record for an interior lineman. He was named Sports Illustrated National Player-of-the-Week.
Nov. 21, 1976 – Clemson scrimmaged at an adjacent field and warmed up there until game time before a 28-9 upset of South Carolina.
Dec. 1, 1976 – Charley Pell was named head coach.
Sept. 17, 1977 – Clemson defeated Georgia 7-6 and this marked the first time that Clemson had won in Athens since 1914.
Nov. 12, 1977 – Fifth-ranked Notre Dame, led by quarterback Joe Montana and 25 other players who would eventually play in the NFL, defeated Clemson in Death Valley, 21-17. It was the closest game for the Fighting Irish in the last nine games of the year. Notre Dame won the national championship that year. A total of 38 players who participated in this game went on to play in the NFL. The list included both quarterbacks, Montana and Steve Fuller, who both won Super Bowl championships.
Nov. 19, 1977 – A 20-yard pass from Steve Fuller to Jerry Butler with just 49 seconds left enabled Clemson to beat South Carolina 31-27. The Tigers had led 24-0, then South Carolina came back to take a 27-24 lead prior to the final Clemson drive. The win earned the Tigers a trip to the Gator Bowl.
Sept. 16, 1978 – Clemson won its 100th game in Death Valley with a 58-3 win over The Citadel. Steve Fuller was a perfect 9-9 passing in the contest, an all-time Clemson record for consecutive completions at the time. Clemson was a record 15-17 passing in the contest and set a school record for team passing efficiency.
Nov. 18, 1978 – Clemson clinched the ACC championship with a thrilling victory over Maryland in College Park. Steve Fuller hit touchdown passes of 87 yards to Jerry Butler and 62 yards to Dwight Clark. The game also included a 98-yard run by Maryland’s Steve Atkins, the longest run in history against the Tigers.
Nov. 25, 1978 – Clemson fans used the south upper deck for the first time in Clemson’s 41-23 win over South Carolina. At the time it was the largest crowd ever to see a game from Philadelphia to Birmingham. Clemson had three backs gain over 100 yards rushing in the game for the first time since 1950. The victory also clinched Clemson’s first 10-win season since 1948.
Nov. 28, 1978 – Steve Fuller was tied for sixth place in the Heisman Trophy voting with Ted Brown of NC State and received 19 first-place votes.
Dec. 4, 1978 – Charley Pell resigned as Clemson’s head coach.
Dec. 5, 1978 – Danny Ford, offensive line coach for the Tigers, was named as Pell’s replacement. He became the head coach at age 30, the youngest Division I head coach in the nation.
Dec. 10, 1978 – It was announced that Danny Ford would be the Tigers’ coach in the Gator Bowl.
Dec. 29, 1978 – Clemson defeated Ohio State 17-15 at the Gator Bowl in Danny Ford’s first game as head coach and Woody Hayes’ final game at Ohio State. The winning touchdown was scored by freshman Cliff Austin. He would score another important touchdown three years later against Nebraska. Charlie Bauman made the key play with an interception of an Art Schlichter pass with just two minutes left. He ran the return out of bounds on the Ohio State sideline and was punched by Hayes.
May 3, 1979 – All-American Jerry Butler became the fifth pick of the 1979 NFL draft when he was chosen by the Buffalo Bills. This was the highest selection of a Clemson player since the 1939 season when Banks McFadden was the No. 4 selection of the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Sept. 22, 1979 – Clemson won its 400th game in history with a 12-7 victory over Georgia.
Nov. 16, 1979 – Clemson won at Notre Dame 16-10 behind Obed Ariri’s three field goals. The Fighting Irish took a 10-0 lead in the first half, but Ariri’s field goals and a 26-yard touchdown run by Billy Lott proved to be the difference. It was just the third time in the last 40 years that Notre Dame’s seniors lost their final home game. The next day, Ariri kicked the only goal for the soccer team in an NCAA Tournament win over South Carolina.
Oct. 11, 1980 – Obed Ariri booted a 52-yard field goal with six seconds left to give Clemson a 27-24 victory at Virginia. Clemson had trailed by two touchdowns entering the fourth quarter and this was the greatest fourth-quarter comeback in Clemson history. Ariri’s boot is also the longest field goal to win a game in Clemson history.
Nov. 8, 1980 – Jeff Davis had a then-school record 24 tackles vs. North Carolina in a head-to-head battle with Lawrence Taylor. The Tigers had the ball inside the North Carolina five with a chance to win, but Taylor sacked quarterback Homer Jordan on third down. Obed Ariri, who led the nation in field goals in 1980 with 23, booted a 27-yarder in the first half to become the NCAA career field-goal leader. The Tar Heels were victorious 24-19, Clemson’s last home loss for four seasons.
Nov. 22, 1980 – Clemson defeated No. 14 South Carolina 27-6 in a contest that gave the Tigers momentum heading into 1981. Willie Underwood played the game of his life with two interceptions for 101 yards, including one for a 37-yard touchdown. Underwood entered the game, the 47th of his career, without an interception. He was named Sports Illustrated National Defensive Player-of-the-Week. Clemson kept South Carolina Heisman Trophy winner George Rogers out of the endzone.
Sept. 19, 1981 – Clemson forced nine Georgia turnovers, most ever by a Clemson opponent, in handing Herschel Walker his only regular season loss as a Bulldog, 13-3. The Bulldogs were the defending national champions and ranked fourth in the nation entering the contest. It was the highest-ranked win for the Tigers at Death Valley until 2003.
Oct. 31, 1981 – Clemson had 756 total offensive yards against Wake Forest in an 82-24 win. The Tigers set 21 school, stadium and conference records in the game that was one of the highest-scoring games in ACC history. The Tigers scored 49 points in the first half, then scored on the first possession of the second half. Clemson’s final touchdown was scored on a 72-yard run by Craig Crawford, his first carry as a Tiger and the longest touchdown play in Tiger history for a player on his first play. Clemson was 12-12 on third-downs and scored 12 touchdowns on the day. The Tigers had a record 536 yards rushing and averaged 8.7 yards per play.
Nov. 7, 1981 – Clemson stopped North Carolina, 10-8, in Chapel Hill in the first battle of top 10 teams in ACC football history. Jeff Bryant recovered a fumble in the last two minutes of the game on a North Carolina lateral. Bryant was the only player who realized the play was a lateral.
Nov. 14, 1981 – Clemson claimed the ACC title with a 21-7 win over Maryland. Homer Jordan completed 20-29 passes for 270 yards in the contest. At the time it was the most completions in a game for a Tiger quarterback in a Clemson victory.
Nov. 21, 1981 – Clemson finished the regular season with an 11-0 record with 29-13 win over South Carolina. It was Clemson’s first perfect regular season since 1948.
Nov. 30, 1981 – Clemson was ranked No. 1 by AP, for the first time. Clemson moved to the No. 1 ranking when Penn State whipped Pittsburgh and quarterback Dan Marino 48-14.
Jan. 1, 1982 – Clemson claimed its first national championship with a 22-15 win over Nebraska in the 48th annual Orange Bowl Classic. One of the Clemson touchdowns was scored by Cliff Austin, who had been trapped in an elevator for two hours at the Clemson hotel earlier in the day.
Jan. 4, 1982 – The cover of Sports Illustrated displayed. Perry Tuttle celebrating after his touchdown catch in the Orange Bowl. It was the first time a Tiger athlete appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated while a Clemson student.
Oct. 16, 1982 – Cliff Austin broke the Clemson record for most rushing yards in a game with 260 in a rout of Duke.
Nov. 27, 1982 – Clemson defeated Wake Forest, 21-17 at the Mirage Bowl, in Tokyo, Japan and also sewed up its second straight ACC title.
Jan. 1, 1983 – Terry Kinard was named National Defensive Player of the Year by CBS Sports. He was presented the award during halftime of the Cotton Bowl by CBS announcer Lindsey Nelson. Kinard had led Clemson to a 9-1-1 record, led the team in tackles and interceptions.
April 26, 1983 – A record 10 Clemson players were chosen in the NFL draft. The group was led by Terry Kinard, who was the No. 10 pick of the entire draft by the New York Giants.
Sept. 3, 1983 – The north upper deck was used for the first time in a victory over Western Carolina, bringing the capacity to over 80,000.
Nov. 12, 1983 – 3,000 Clemson students arrived at Death Valley at 7:00 a.m. to blow up 363,729 balloons. The 80,000 fans released the balloons as the team ran down the hill. On the field, Mike Eppley was outstanding with three touchdown passes and Kevin Mack rushed for 186 yards in his final game in Death Valley. He scored his final touchdown with just one shoe on, as he had lost it during his 56-yard run for a score. Clemson downed the Top 20 Maryland team and Boomer Esiason, 52-27.
Nov. 19, 1983 – Clemson closed the 1983 season with a 22-13 win at South Carolina. The game gave the Tigers a 30-2-2 record for over the last three years, the top record in college football.
Sept. 8, 1984 – Clemson defeated Virginia in Charlottesville 55-0. Virginia ended the season with an 8-4 record and went to a bowl game. It is one of the largest margins of victory in Clemson history over a team that went to a bowl game. Mike Eppley led the way, hitting 8-14 passes for 172 yards and a pair of scores. The Tigers advanced to No. 2 in the nation with the win.
Sept. 22, 1984 – Georgia defeated Clemson in Athens, 26-23 on a 60-yard field goal by Kevin Butler with 11 seconds left. Clemson, who had a 20-6 lead at halftime, ran the ensuing kickoff back to Georgia territory and a personal foul was thrown against the Bulldogs after the tackle. But, after a long debate, officials ruled the game had ended when the foul was committed and Donald Igwebuike, who led the nation in field goal percentage in 1984 (17-18) was denied an opportunity to tie the game from 42 yards away.
Nov. 10, 1984 – Clemson defeated Virginia Tech 17-10 in the greatest matchup of defensive linemen in Death Valley history. Clemson featured All-American William Perry and Virginia Tech featured Outland Trophy winner and future All-Pro Bruce Smith. Clemson also had freshman Michael Dean Perry, who went on to earn six Pro Bowl selections.
Sept. 14, 1985 – David Treadwell showed a foreshadowing of things to come with a 36-yard field goal on the last play of the game to give Clemson a 20-17 victory at Virginia Tech in the season opener. Perry Williams had a Clemson record five pass deflections in this game.
Sept. 21, 1985 – Clemson and Georgia met in the first nationally-televised (CBS) football game from Clemson. Georgia won the game 20-13 thanks to a fourth-quarter fumble recovery by offensive lineman Peter Anderson. No opposing offensive lineman has scored a touchdown in a game since.
Nov. 23, 1985 – Clemson beat South Carolina 24-17 and accepted an Independence Bowl bid.
Sept. 20, 1986 – Clemson defeated Georgia 31-28, as David Treadwell kicked a 46-yard field goal with no time left on the clock. Athens, Ga. native Norman Haynes led Clemson in tackles with 14, while Terrance Flagler led the offense with nearly 200 all-purpose running yards.
Nov. 1, 1986 – Terrance Flagler scored four touchdowns, two receiving and two rushing, and gained 274 all-purpose yards in Clemson’s 28-20 win at Wake Forest. He had an 88-yard run in the contest, the longest of his career.
Nov. 15, 1986 – Clemson tied Maryland 17-17 to win the ACC championship, as Treadwell kicked a 20-yard field goal with two seconds left. Both Clemson coach Danny Ford and Maryland coach Bobby Ross, coached the game from the press box due to suspensions imposed by the ACC.
Dec. 27, 1986 – Clemson won the Gator Bowl championship with a 27-21 win over Stanford. Clemson scored all 27 points in the first half, then held on as Brad Muster led a furious comeback.
Jan. 3, 1987 – Clemson was ranked No. 17 in the nation in the final AP poll, its first final top-20 ranking since 1983.
Sept. 19, 1987 – David Treadwell booted a 21-yard field goal with two seconds left to beat Georgia on national TV, 21-20.
Sept. 26, 1987 – Clemson had not returned a punt or kickoff for a touchdown in 17 years, then had one of each in a 33-12 win over Georgia Tech. Donnell Woolford scored on a 78-yard punt return and Joe Henderson on a 95-yard kickoff return. Clemson had gone 999 punt and kickoff returns without a touchdown prior to Joe Henderson’s score.
Jan. 1, 1988 – Clemson gained 499 yards in handing Penn State its worst bowl-game defeat (35-10) in the Citrus Bowl. Rodney Williams was named the player-of-the-game as he threw for 214 yards. Terry Allen rushed for 105 yards and Keith Jennings caught seven passes for 110 yards, giving Clemson a 200-yard passer, 100-yard rusher and 100-yard receiver in the same game for the first time since 1969. Clemson was ranked No. 10 in the final UPI poll.
Sept. 17, 1988 – Florida State defeated Clemson 24-21 in the “Puntrooskie Game” at Death Valley. It was the first battle of top-10 teams in the history of Death Valley. Clemson had the Seminoles deep in its own territory late in the fourth quarter with the score tied 21-21 when Florida State Head Coach Bobby Bowden ran an intricate fake punt play that resulted in Leroy Butler streaking 78 yards to the Clemson three. Florida State booted a field goal to win the game.
Nov. 12, 1988 – Clemson clinched an ACC record-tying third straight ACC title with a 49-25 win at Maryland. Clemson scored 28 points in the fourth quarter on just nine offensive plays.
Nov. 19, 1988 – Clemson gained revenge for a loss at South Carolina in 1987 with a 29-10 victory over the Gamecocks at Clemson. Rodney Williams was masterful in running the Tiger offense in his final home game. He would end his career with 32 wins, one of the highest totals by a Tiger quarterback.
Jan. 2, 1989 – Clemson became the first ACC team to defeat Oklahoma in a 13-6 Citrus Bowl victory. Clemson held the Oklahoma offense without a touchdown for just the second time in the decade of the eighties. Clemson closed the season with a No. 9 ranking and became the only school in the nation to win a conference title, a bowl game and rank in the final Top 20 for three straight years.
Sept. 9, 1989 – Clemson earned a landmark victory at Florida State, 34-23. The Tigers jumped out to a 21-0 lead behind a 73-yard interception return by Wayne Simmons and a 73-yard touchdown run by Terry Allen. The victory moved Clemson to No. 7 in the AP poll and it was the last loss of the season for Florida State, who eventually ended the season ranked No. 3 in the nation by AP and No. 2 by UPI.
Nov. 18, 1989 – Clemson slaughtered South Carolina 45-0, the largest margin of victory for Clemson in the series in 89 years. Clemson outgained the Gamecocks 466-155 and picked up 355 yards rushing. Clemson’s fifth-rated defense forced five turnovers. Terry Allen rushed for 89 yards, then suffered a knee injury just before halftime and never carried the ball for the Tigers again.
Dec. 30, 1989 – The Tigers defeated West Virginia 27-7 in the Gator Bowl. It was Clemson’s fourth straight bowl victory and the fourth straight year Clemson concluded the season ranked in the national top 20. The Tigers held West Virginia to just 119 yards passing and forced Heisman Trophy runner up Major Harris into three fumbles. Chester McGlockton sacked Harris in the endzone and recovered the ball for a touchdown for Clemson’s final score.
Jan. 18, 1990 – Danny Ford resigned as head coach after 11 full seasons. He finished his career tied for first in ACC history in career victories with 96 and he was second in winning percentage. He had a 96-29-4 overall record and 76 percent winning mark. He was the third winningest active coach in the nation at the time of his resignation.
Jan. 21, 1990 – Ken Hatfield became Clemson’s 22nd head coach. Hatfield had been the head coach at Arkansas since 1984 and took his alma mater to bowl games each of his six seasons.
Sept. 1, 1990 – Clemson defeated Long Beach State 59-0 in the first game of the Ken Hatfield era. Clemson scored two touchdowns via return, one on an interception by Arlington Nunn and one on a kickoff by Doug Thomas. The 49ers were coached by NFL legend George Allen, who was making a comeback as a coach. Unfortunately, the venerable coach who led that team to a 6-5 record, died at the end of the season from pneumonia.
Oct. 13, 1990 – Eventual national champion Georgia Tech defeated Clemson 21-19 in Atlanta. Clemson rushed for over 300 yards in the game, yet lost to Bobby Ross’s team. Chris Gardocki’s 60-yard field goal attempt to win the game was just a couple of yards short.
Jan. 1, 1991 – Clemson shut out Illinois 30-0 in its first Hall of Fame Bowl appearance. It was Clemson’s largest margin of victory in a bowl game. The win elevated Clemson to No. 9 in the final AP poll and gave Clemson a Top 10 ranking in Ken Hatfield’s first year. He was the first ACC coach ever to take a team to a Top 10 ranking in his first year. It was a record 40th win for Clemson’s seniors.
Oct. 26, 1991 – Clemson wore purple jerseys for the first time since the 1930s in a 29-19 victory over No. 10 (USA Today) NC State. The No. 18 (AP) Tigers were led by freshman Nelson Welch, who kicked a Clemson record five field goals. Clemson scored its first touchdown on a fake field goal as Rudy Harris ran three yards for a score.
Nov. 16, 1991 – The Tigers clinched their 13th ACC Championship, first under Ken Hatfield, with a 40-7 win over Maryland at Death Valley. DeChane Cameron was 13-23 for 213 yards in leading Clemson to victory in his final home game.
Nov. 23, 1991 – DeChane Cameron gained 322 yards of total offense, 206 passing and 116 rushing to lead Clemson to a 41-23 win at South Carolina. Clemson also had a 100-yard receiver in the game, giving Clemson a 200-yard passer, 100-yard rusher and 100-yard receiver (Terry Smith) in the same game for just the fifth time in Clemson history.
Nov. 30, 1991 – Clemson ran its overseas record to 2-0 with a 33-21 win over Duke in the Coca Cola Bowl in Tokyo, Japan. Clemson had to score 26 points in the fourth quarter to register the victory. It was Ken Hatfield’s 100th win as a college coach.
Sept. 12, 1992 – Florida State defeated Clemson 24-20 in the first night game at Clemson since 1956. The contest was televised by ESPN. Clemson had taken a 20-17 lead in the fourth quarter on a touchdown pass to Terry Smith. The Seminoles led by quarterback Charlie Ward, scored the winning TD in the two final minutes.
Oct. 10, 1992 – Clemson overcame a 28-0 deficit to defeat Virginia in Charlottesville 29-28. Nelson Welch kicked a 32-yard field goal with 52 seconds left to cap the comeback. Quarterback Louis Solomon came off the bench with the score 28-0 and led the comeback. His 64-yard scoring run just before the half changed the course of the game. The win over the No. 10 Cavaliers was just the third in Clemson history over a top-10 team on the road.
Nov. 7, 1992 – Clemson soundly defeated No. 18 North Carolina 40-7 at Death Valley. Freshman Patrick Sapp hit 13-23 passes for 205 yards, while Rodney Blunt scored three touchdowns in leading the Clemson offense. The Tigers controlled the clock for a record 42:58.
Nov. 24, 1993 – Ken Hatfield and Clemson University announced a separation, ending his four-year career as head coach. Hatfield was 32-13-1 at Clemson and his .707 winning percentage was third in ACC history when he departed.
Nov. 29, 1993 – Tommy West was named Clemson’s 23rd head coach and took over the team heading for the Peach Bowl. West, who spent the 1993 regular season as head coach at Chattanooga, became the sixth coach in Division I history to make his head coaching debut for a school in a bowl game and the second coach to ever become head coach for a bowl game after not serving as an assistant at that school during the regular season.
Dec. 31, 1993 – Clemson scored the latest touchdown to gain victory in a game since 1958, as Patrick Sapp connected with Terry Smith with 0:20 left to defeat Kentucky, 14-13, in the Peach Bowl. West experienced his fifth consecutive bowl victory with Clemson, as the Tigers won four straight bowl games during his years as an assistant (1986-89).
Sept. 3, 1994 – For the first time ever, Clemson faced a team coached by a Clemson graduate. Bobby Johnson, an academic All-ACC defensive back for the Tigers and a 1973 graduate, brought his Furman Paladins to Memorial Stadium. Clemson came away with a 27-6 win. Clemson inducted Frank Howard, Steve Fuller and Banks McFadden into the Ring of Honor prior to the game.
Sept. 17, 1994 – Clemson and Virginia met in the 1,000th ACC football game in history. Virginia won 9-6. Andre Carter had three takeaways in the game, just the fourth Tiger in history to do that.
Oct. 15, 1994 – Nelson Welch became the ACC’s career field goal leader with a 47-yarder in the third quarter at Duke. It gave Welch 61 career field goals, breaking the record of 60 held by Jess Atkinson, Scott Sisson and Obed Ariri.
Nov. 5, 1994 – Nelson Welch became Clemson’s career scoring leader with five field goals and a PAT in Clemson’s 28-17 upset of No. 12 North Carolina in Chapel Hill. Clemson’s defense held the Tar Heels to just 11 rushing yards. Clemson started an all first-year freshman backfield.
May 15, 1995 – The Banks McFadden building was dedicated. The facility is the home of Clemson football administration and with all the top of the line in facilities for players and coaches.
Aug. 12, 1995 – The Carolina Panthers and the Denver Broncos played the first professional game in the history of Memorial Stadium. The Panthers won the exhibition game over the John Elway-led Broncos.
Sept. 17, 1995 – The Carolina Panthers met the St. Louis Rams in the first regular season NFL game in Death Valley. It was the first of eight regular season games for the expansion Panthers at Clemson Memorial Stadium.
Oct. 7, 1995 – Clemson wore “turn back the clock” uniforms for the Clemson-Georgia game at Death Valley. The uniforms were replicas of those worn by the 1939 Clemson team that went to the Cotton Bowl, the first bowl appearance in Clemson history. Georgia won the thrilling game, 19-17, but that would be Clemson’s final regular season loss of 1995. Leomont Evans had 18 tackles in the contest, most ever by a Clemson defensive back.
Nov. 11, 1995 – Two all-time Clemson records were set on the same day in Clemson’s 34-17 win over Duke. Raymond Priester gained 263 yards rushing to break Cliff Austin’s Clemson single-game mark. All-American Brian Dawkins had three interceptions in the first quarter to set a quarter record and tie the single-game mark for interceptions. The game was played in a driving rainstorm in the first half and brilliant sunshine in the second.
Nov. 18, 1995 – Clemson outscored South Carolina 21-0 in the fourth quarter to defeat South Carolina in Columbia, 38-17. It was Clemson’s fourth straight win in Columbia. The victory clinched a bid to the Gator Bowl for the Tigers.
Dec. 10, 1995 – The defending Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers defeated the Carolina Panthers at Death Valley. Jerry Rice caught one touchdown pass from Steve Young in the contest that attracted over 75,000 fans.
Dec. 15, 1995 – Linebacker Anthony Simmons was named UPI National Freshman-of-the-Year, the first defensive player in the award’s history. He led Clemson in tackles (150).
Jan. 26, 1996 – Clemson legend Frank Howard, the school’s head coach from 1940-69, passed away at his home in Clemson. Howard, who still had come to his office a month prior to his death, died on the same day as his former teammate and Alabama legend Bear Bryant, 14 years later.
Sept. 7, 1996 – Clemson’s Centennial team was honored at halftime of the Clemson vs. Furman game. The Tigers wore their “Turn back the Clock” uniforms for this game, a 19-3 Clemson victory. Clemson had a school record 12 sacks in the win.
Nov. 2, 1996 – Clemson held Maryland without a touchdown for the fourth straight year in a 35-3 Tiger victory. Anthony Simmons keyed the Clemson defense that had eight sacks with 15 tackles for loss. Maryland had not scored a touchdown against Clemson since 1992.
Nov. 9, 1996 – The Tigers upset 15th ranked Virginia 24-16 in Charlottesville. Clemson had two players rush for over 120 yards in the contest as Kelton Dunnican had a career high 123 yards and Raymond Priester had 122. It was the second time in four years that Clemson had defeated a ranked Virginia team on the road.
Dec. 28, 1996 – Raymond Priester became Clemson’s career and single-season rushing leader in a 10-7 loss to LSU in the Peach Bowl. Priester gained 151 yards rushing in 25 attempts, giving him 1,345 yards for the season and 3,010 for his career. He broke his own single-season record and broke Kenny Flowers’ career record in the game.
Sept. 13, 1997 – Matt Padgett kicked a 20-yard field goal with 19 seconds left to give Clemson a 19-17 win at NC State. Nealon Greene became the first quarterback in school history to have consecutive 250-yard passing games. The senior also had 76 yards rushing and the 336 yards total offense were the second most in Clemson history.
Sept. 20, 1997 – Tony Horne and Florida State’s Peter Warrick put on the greatest individual all-purpose running show in the history of Death Valley. Horne had 10 receptions for 131 yards and had 267 yards of all-purpose running, while Warrick had a 90-yard punt return and an 80-yard touchdown reception in gaining 372 yards of all-purpose running as Florida State defeated Clemson 35-28.
Oct. 4, 1997 – Nealon Greene tied a Clemson record for touchdown passes with four in a 39-7 rout of UTEP. He completed three of the scores to Tony Horne, as that also tied a Tiger single-game record.
Nov. 8, 1997 – Rahim Abdullah returned an interception 63 yards for a touchdown, clinching a 29-20 Clemson victory in overtime over Duke. It was the first overtime game in Clemson history, the first in ACC history involving two league teams.
Nov. 22, 1997 – Clemson earned its third straight bowl bid with a 47-21 victory over South Carolina in Columbia. It was Clemson’s fifth straight victory in Columbia over the Gamecocks. Antwan Edwards was the star for Clemson with two interceptions, including one that he returned for a touchdown. The 47 points were the most by the Tigers against South Carolina since 1900.
Dec. 8, 1997 – Anthony Simmons was named first-team AP All-American, his third straight year on one of the top three teams. He became Clemson’s second three-time All-American in history.
Sept. 19, 1998 – Antwan Edwards became the first Clemson player in history to have two runs of at least 80 yards in the same game. The All-America defensive back had a 93-yard fumble return for a touchdown, longest in Clemson history, and an 85-yard kickoff return in a 20-18 loss at Virginia. It was Clemson’s first ever loss on Sept. 19th after eight straight wins.
Oct. 31, 1998 – In a 46-39 loss to NC State, Brandon Streeter set the Clemson single-game passing yardage (329) and completion (27) record. He threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter. For the first time ever, Clemson had two 100-yard receivers in the same game. Brian Wofford had 9-128 and a touchdown, while classmate Mal Lawyer had 8-100 and two touchdown receptions. Clemson could not overcome the performance of Torry Holt, who had 11-225 and four touchdown catches.
Nov. 12, 1998 – Clemson played host to its first ever ESPN home Thursday night game, a 24-21 loss to a top-25 Georgia Tech team. Georgia Tech scored the winning touchdown with just one minute remaining.
Nov. 18, 1998 – It was announced that the South Carolina game of November 21 would be Tommy West’s final game as Clemson Head Coach.
Nov. 21, 1998 – Clemson beat South Carolina 28-19 in Tommy West’s final game as Clemson coach. The victory, played before a crowd of 84,423, ended a seven game winning streak for the road team in the series, tied for the longest streak of its kind in NCAA history. A highlight of the contest was a 48-yard interception return for a touchdown by Clemson outside linebacker Howard Bartley, who came back to letter as a senior after two torn ACL operations. Tiger fans tore down the goalpost after the game, just the second time in the history of Death Valley that the goalposts came down after a Tiger victory. Coach West, his wife, Lindsey, and son, Turner, were carried off the field at game’s end.
Dec. 2, 1998 – Tommy Bowden was named Clemson Head Football Coach.
Dec. 5, 1999 – Former South Carolina Head Coach Brad Scott was hired as Clemson’s assistant head coach under Tommy Bowden. Scott was also hired to coach the tight ends.
Sept. 11, 1999 – Tommy Bowden recorded his first win as Clemson head coach, a 33-14 victory over 19th ranked Virginia. Quarterback Brandon Streeter threw for a school record 343 yards and was named National Player-of-the-Week by USA Today.
Oct. 16, 1999 – Woodrow Dantzler broke a 52-year old Clemson standard for total offense in Clemson’s 42-30 victory at Maryland. Dantzler gained 435 yards of total offense, including 183 yards on the ground, a record for yards rushing by a Tiger signal-caller at the time. Travis Zachery rushed for three touchdowns as well.
Oct. 23, 1999 – In the first meeting of father and son head coaches in Division I college football history, Bobby Bowden and Florida State defeated Tommy Bowden and Clemson by a score of 17-14. The game was played before a record crowd of 86,092. Clemson had a chance to tie the eventual national champs, but Tony Lazzara’s 41-yard field goal attempt with 1:57 left, was tipped by Tay Cody.
Nov. 6, 1999 – Keith Adams set a school record with four sacks and six total tackles for loss, leading Clemson to a 58-7 win over Duke in the final home game of the season. He was named National Defensive Player-of-the-Week by the Bronko Nagurski Committee. Brandon Streeter completed 22-30 for 279 yards in his final home game as well.
Nov. 20, 1999 – Clemson defeated South Carolina 31-21 in Columbia to clinch a bid to play Mississippi State in the Peach Bowl in Tommy Bowden’s first season. Keith Adams had a school record 27 tackles in the contest. Rod Gardner’s 29-yard touchdown reception from Woodrow Dantzler on a fourth-down play iced the game for the Tigers.
Dec. 1, 1999 – Tommy Bowden was named ACC Coach of the Year, Clemson’s first selection for that honor since 1981.
Sept. 9, 2000 – Clemson beat Missouri 62-9 at Death Valley, the school’s highest-point total at the time since 1981. Brian Mance had three takeaways in just 16 scrimmage plays on defense.
Sept. 23, 2000 – Woodrow Dantzler rushed for 220 yards, an ACC record for a quarterback, in Clemson’s 31-10 win over Virginia. Dantzler also passed for 154 yards, bringing Clemson to a 4-0 record and a No. 7 AP ranking.
Sept. 30, 2000 – Bob Bradley worked his 500th consecutive Clemson football game on this day, a 52-22 win at Duke. Bradley served as Clemson SID or SID emeritus for 45 years.
Oct. 21, 2000 – Clemson improved to 8-0 with a 38-24 victory at North Carolina. Reserve quarterback Willie Simmons threw four touchdown passes, three to Rod Gardner, in the win. Clemson overcame a 17-point deficit, the third largest deficit overcome to gain victory in Clemson history.
Oct. 22, 2000 – Clemson was ranked No. 3 in the nation in the USA Today poll, Clemson’s highest ranking in any poll since the 1984 season.
Oct. 30, 2000 – Legendary Clemson sports figure Bob Bradley passed away at the age of 74. He had been presented the Order of the Palmetto by the Governor’s office two days prior to his passing.
Nov. 18, 2000 – Rod Gardner made a spectacular 50-yard catch with 10 seconds remaining to set up Aaron Hunt’s 25-yard game winning field goal with just three seconds remaining in Clemson’s 16-14 win over South Carolina in Death Valley.
Dec. 5, 2000 – Kyle Young and Chad Carson were both named first-team Academic All-Americans, the only year in history Clemson has had two first-team Academic All-Americans.
Jan. 5, 2001 – Clemson was ranked 16th in the final AP poll and 14th in the final USA Today poll. It was Clemson’s first final top-25 ranking since 1993 and its highest final ranking since 1991.
April 24, 2001 – Rod Gardner was selected in the first round, the 15th pick overall, by Washington.
Sept. 15, 2001 – The Clemson vs. Duke football game scheduled this day was postponed until December 1 due to the terrorist attacks in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001.
Sept. 29, 2001 – Clemson defeated Georgia Tech in Atlanta by the score of 47-44 in overtime. Woodrow Dantzler scored on an 11-yard run in the extra period to give Clemson the win. Dantzler rushed for 164 yards and passed for 254 in the all-around performance that brought him National Player-of-the-Week honors by USA Today. Georgia Tech was ranked No. 9 entering the game. It was the highest ranked road win for the Tiger program since 1981.
Oct. 13, 2001 – Two weeks and one game after gaining 418 yards of total offense at Georgia Tech, Woodrow Dantzler trumped that performance with a 517-yard day at NC State. Dantzler broke numerous Clemson records in completing 23-27 passes for 333 yards and four scores. He also rushed 23 times for 184 yards and two scores. The six touchdowns and 517 yards were Clemson single-game marks. Dantzler went over 4,000 career passing yards and 2,000 career rushing yards in the game, the first player in ACC history to do both.
Dec. 1, 2001 – Woodrow Dantzler became the first player in NCAA Division I history to pass for 2000 yards and rush for 1000 yards in the same season. Dantzler reached the plateau with an 18-yard run for a touchdown against Duke in Death Valley. Dantzler completed the regular season with 2360 yards passing and 1004 yards rushing.
Dec. 11, 2001 – Clemson was the only school in the nation with a Hall of Fame inductee and a National Football Foundation scholar at enshrinement ceremonies in New York City. Terry Kinard became just the second Tiger inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, joining the legendary Banks McFadden. Kyle Young was named a National Football Foundation Scholar Athlete. Earlier in the week, Young became just the second offensive lineman in college football history to be named a first-team Academic All-American three times.
Dec. 31, 2001 – Clemson gained its first bowl win since 1993 with a 49-24 victory over Louisiana Tech in the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise, Idaho. Clemson scored 28 points in the third quarter to blow the game open. Woodrow Dantzler, playing in his final game at Clemson, captured game MVP honors by completing 15-23 passes for 218 yards and four touchdowns. Bernard Rambert rushed for 101 yards and had 77 yards receiving to support a Clemson offense that gained 548 yards of total offense. Four different freshmen, Derrick Hamilton, Airese Currie, Roscoe Crosby and Ben Hall, scored touchdowns for the Tigers.
Sept. 14, 2002 – Derrick Hamilton gained 256 all-purpose rushing yards in Clemson’s 24-19 win over Georgia Tech in Death Valley. Hamilton gained 96 yards rushing, 97 in punt returns, 41 in kickoff returns and 22 receiving in accumulating the fifth highest all-purpose running total in a single game in Clemson history. He had a 77 yard scoring run and a 79 yard punt return.
Nov. 2, 2002 – Clemson scored 24 points in the fourth quarter and overcame a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit for the second time in Tiger history in a 34-31 win at Duke. Aaron Hunt kicked a 21-yard field goal with eight seconds left to give the Tigers the victory. Freshman Charlie Whitehurst completed a Clemson single-game record 34 passes and threw for a school record 420 yards in the victory in his first college start. He also tied the Clemson record for touchdown passes in a game with four.
Nov. 9, 2002 – For the second straight game, Charlie Whitehurst tied the Clemson single-game touchdown pass record with four at North Carolina in a 42-12 Clemson win in Chapel Hill. His passing efficiency rating of 241 for the game was a Clemson single-game record given a minimum of 20 attempts.
Nov. 23, 2002 – Clemson outscored South Carolina 14-0 in the final quarter to defeat its state rival 27-20 at Death Valley in the 100th meeting between the two schools. Charlie Whitehurst completed 27-38 passes for 287 yards in the contest.
Sept. 9, 2003 – Jim Phillips, the “Voice of the Tigers” for 36 years, died suddenly in the early morning hours after suffering an aneurysm of the aorta. Phillips had served as Clemson’s play-by-play announcer for football and men’s basketball since 1968, and he had also done baseball and women’s basketball for many years. He worked 401 Clemson football games in his career, as the season opener in 2003 against Georgia was his 400th. His final game was the Clemson-Furman game on Sept. 6, 2003. The following Saturday when the Tigers faced Middle Tennessee, a tribute for Phillips’ career was played over the video scoreboard at Death Valley. The band concluded its halftime performance by forming “JIM” as it marched off the field. Tim Bourret handled the play-by-play duties for the Middle Tennessee game, a 37-14 Tiger win. The following week, Pete Yanity was named as Phillips’ interim replacement, a title that was changed to permanent the following spring.
Sept. 20, 2003 – Charlie Whitehurst threw for 298 yards and three touchdowns and the Clemson defense held Georgia Tech to just three points and 45 yards rushing in a 39-3 victory in Atlanta. It was Clemson’s largest margin of victory over Georgia Tech since 1903, when John Heisman was the Clemson coach. It was also the largest margin of victory in any ACC road game for the Tigers since 1984.
Oct. 11, 2003 – Clemson extended its all-time record in overtime games to 3-0 with a 30-27 victory over Virginia in Death Valley. Kevin Youngblood scored the winning, “walk-off” touchdown on a four-yard touchdown pass from Charlie Whitehurst. Yusef Kelly, in his only healthy game of the 2003 season, rushed for 88 yards to lead the Tiger ground game.
Nov. 8, 2003 – Clemson shocked the college football world with a 26-10 victory over No. 3 Florida State in Death Valley. It was the highest-ranked team Clemson had beaten in its history. The Tigers were coming off a 45-17 loss at Wake Forest the previous week and Florida State was coming off a 37-0 victory at Notre Dame. It was Clemson’s first win over Florida State in 14 years. Aaron Hunt kicked four field goals and became Clemson’s career scoring leader that night. Charlie Whitehurst threw for 272 yards, including 123 to wide receiver Derrick Hamilton. Clemson allowed Florida State only 11 yards rushing, the fewest in the Bobby Bowden coaching era at Florida State. Tye Hill led the secondary with an early interception and was named ACC Defensive Player-of-the-Week.
Nov. 22, 2003 – Charlie Whitehurst completed his first 10 passes and threw touchdowns passes on Clemson’s first three possessions in Clemson’s 63-17 victory at South Carolina. It was the most points scored by Clemson against South Carolina in history and the largest margin of victory for Clemson in the series since 1900. It was also the most points scored by Clemson in any game since an 82-24 win over Wake Forest in 1981. Chad Jasmin rushed for four touchdowns, becoming the first Tiger to score four touchdowns against the Gamecocks since 1918. Jamaal Fudge had two interceptions to lead the Clemson secondary.
Dec. 1, 2003 – Tommy Bowden was named ACC Coach-of-the-Year, the second time in five years that he won the award.
Dec. 2, 2003 – Tommy Bowden and Clemson University agreed to a three-year contract extension.
Dec. 8, 2003 – Clemson announced it had received 33,000 applications for tickets to the 2004 Peach Bowl, 13,000 more tickets than its supply. It was the greatest ticket demand for a Clemson bowl game since the 1982 Orange Bowl.
Jan. 2, 2004 – Clemson defeated No. 6 Tennessee 27-14 in front of a record crowd of 75,125 fans at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. It was the highest-ranked team Clemson had defeated in a bowl game since a win over No. 4 Nebraska in the 1982 Orange Bowl. Chad Jasmin was named the offensive MVP after rushing for a career-high 130 yards in his final game as a Clemson Tiger. Charlie Whitehurst added 246 yards passing and Kyle Browning scored on an eight-yard run on a “Panther” play in the second quarter to help spur the offense. Leroy Hill led the defense with 12 tackles, including two for losses. Combined with the victory over No. 3 Florida State the previous November, Clemson defeated two top-10 teams in the same season for the first time since 1981. It also gave Tommy Bowden three victories over coaches who had won the National Championship over the last four games of the season.
Jan. 5, 2004 – Clemson was ranked No. 22 in the nation in the final AP and USA Today polls and No. 16 in the final Sagarin computer ranking.
Jan. 9, 2004 – Tommy Bowden was named a finalist for the 2003 Bear Bryant Award.
Sept. 25, 2004 – Justin Miller set an NCAA record with 282 kickoff return yards at No. 8 Florida State. He returned two kickoffs for touchdowns of 97 and 86 yards, which set the Clemson single-game record and tied the NCAA record. The Tigers lost the game to the Seminoles 41-22.
Oct. 16, 2004 – Clemson recorded 11 sacks, the most in the Tommy Bowden era, in a 35-6 Homecoming victory over Utah State. The Tigers held the Aggies to -20 rushing yards, the fewest Clemson has ever allowed against an FBS opponent.
Nov. 6, 2004 – Clemson scored 21 unanswered points and held No. 10 Miami (Fla.) scoreless in the second half to upset the Hurricanes 24-17 in overtime at the Orange Bowl. It was Clemson’s third win over a top-10 team in two seasons, as the Tigers improved to 5-0 in overtime.
Nov. 20, 2004 – Clemson scored 14 early points and only allowed South Carolina to snap the ball in Tiger territory four times, as the Tigers defeated the Gamecocks for the seventh time in eight years by a score of 29-7. It was Clemson’s 11th win in its last 12 games at Death Valley since 2003. It was also Clemson’s 600th all-time win. The game was delayed 15 minutes due to a bench-clearing brawl with 5:48 remaining in the fourth quarter.
June 4, 2005 – Banks McFadden, regarded by sports historians as Clemson’s greatest all-around athlete in its 109-year intercollegiate sports history, passed away after a lengthy bout with cancer. The native of Great Falls, S.C. died at the home of his daughter (Lil Arrants) in Ormond Beach, Fla. He was 88-years old. McFadden was buried on Cemetery Hill behind Clemson Memorial Stadium. Flags on the Clemson campus were lowered to half staff in McFadden’s honor. A moment of silence was observed in McFadden’s honor prior to Saturday night’s NCAA Tournament Baseball game against College of Charleston at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. McFadden was a standout at Clemson in football, basketball and track, earning three letters in each sport from 1936-40. He earned All-America honors in both basketball (1938-39) and football (1939), and was named the nation’s most versatile athlete in 1939.
Sept. 3, 2005 – Clemson opened the season with a thrilling 25-24 victory over No. 17 Texas A&M at Death Valley. Jad Dean kicked a school-record six field goals, including a 42-yarder with two seconds left to give Clemson its first season-opening win over a ranked team since 1958.
Sept. 10, 2005 – Clemson had its second straight thrilling victory in a 28-24 win at Maryland. Reggie Merriweather scored on a 38-yard run with 2:58 left to give Clemson the victory. Charlie Whitehurst connected on 18-22 passes for 178 yards in leading Clemson to the victory. The Tigers overcame a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to gain the victory. Clemson had a 9:47 drive during the game, the longest in Tiger history in terms of time of possession at the time.
Sept. 17, 2005 – Miami (Fla.) defeated Clemson 36-30 in the longest game in Tiger history, a triple-overtime contest before a sellout crowd at Death Valley. Clemson tied the score with 15 seconds left on a 27-yard field goal by Jad Dean. Clemson tied the score at the end of the first overtime on a fourth-down touchdown pass from Whitehurst to Curtis Baham (six yards). Tyrone Moss scored what proved to be the game-winner in the third overtime on a 25-yard run. It was the first overtime loss in Clemson history after five consecutive wins. The game took four hours and 10 minutes to play.
Oct. 13, 2005 – Clemson won its first-ever Thursday night ESPN game in a 31-10 victory at NC State. Freshman James Davis ran through a defense that had three starters who would be drafted in the first round by the NFL the following April. Davis had 143 yards and scored two touchdowns on just 12 carries before suffering a broken wrist in the third quarter. Charlie Whitehurst completed 22-31 passes for 246 yards.
Nov. 5, 2005 – Charlie Whitehurst’s 37-game streak as the starting Tiger quarterback came to an end when he missed the Duke game due to a sore shoulder. Will Proctor took over the reins and led Clemson to a 49-20 win by completing 13-21 passes for 201 yards and two scores.
Nov. 12, 2005 – Clemson handed Florida State a 21-point loss in Bowden Bowl VII at Death Valley. Chansi Stuckey scored two touchdowns, his first two touchdown catches as a Tiger, and Charlie Whitehurst completed 21-32 passes for 269 yards and three scores on Senior Day. Clemson held Florida State to just 124 yards passing and outscored the Seminoles 21-0 in the second half.
Nov. 19, 2005 – Clemson defeated a top-20 South Carolina team on the road for the first time in a 13-9 victory. Charlie Whitehurst beat the Gamecocks for the fourth straight year, the first time in the history of the series a starting quarterback had a perfect 4-0 record in the series.
Dec. 27, 2005 – Clemson defeated Colorado in the Champs Sports Bowl 19-10 behind a 150-yard rushing performance by freshman James Davis, who was named MVP. Colorado Head Coach Gary Barnett had been fired a few days prior to Christmas. Clemson held Colorado to 124 yards total offense and 17 yards rushing, the best defensive effort by in a bowl game by any team in 2005.
Sept. 2, 2006 – Clemson opened the season with a 54-6 victory over Florida Atlantic, but it was a costly win, as preseason All-America linebacker Anthony Waters was lost for the season with a torn ACL. Waters went on to be drafted by the San Diego Chargers despite playing just one game in 2006. He was voted one of the team captains at the end of the season by his teammates, the only Tiger captain in history to play just one contest during that season.
Sept. 16, 2006 – James Davis scored on a one-yard touchdown run with eight seconds left to give Clemson a 27-20 victory over No. 9 Florida State in Tallahassee. It was Clemson’s third win over the Seminoles in four years, the first ACC team to defeat the Seminoles three out of four years. Davis had set up the winning score with a 47-yard run earlier in the drive.
Oct. 7, 2006 – Gaines Adams returned a botched field-goal attempt 66 yards for a touchdown to lead a fourth-quarter comeback in a 27-17 win at Wake Forest. Clemson trailed 17-3 in the fourth quarter before Adams’ play, which was one of the top-four Game-Changing plays in college football in 2006. It marked just the third time in school history that the Tigers overcame a deficit of 14 points or more in the fourth quarter to gain victory. Wake Forest would go on to win the ACC Championship.
Oct. 16, 2006 – It was announced that ESPN College GameDay would come to Clemson for the first time in history for an October 21 game between No. 12 Clemson and No. 13 Georgia Tech. The crew of Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Lee Corso broadcast from Bowman Field from 10:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. in front of a crowd of over 7,000, the largest on-campus GameDay crowd at that point in the program’s history.
Oct. 21, 2006 – Clemson beat No. 13 Georgia Tech 31-7 in Death Valley. Clemson was ranked No. 12 in the nation entering the game and it was the first battle of top-25 teams in Death Valley in 14 years. James Davis rushed for 216 yards and C.J. Spiller added 116 yards on the ground to lead Clemson to a 321-yard rushing performance. It was the first time in history that Clemson had a 200-yard rusher and 100-yard rusher in the same game. Spiller scored on a 50-yard run and 50-yard reception, the first player in Tiger history to have one of each in a game.
Oct. 22, 2006 – Clemson was ranked No. 10 in the AP poll and No. 11 in the USA Today poll, the Tigers’ highest rankings since the 2000 season.
April 28, 2007 – Gaines Adams was taken in the first round of the NFL draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was the fourth pick of the entire draft, tied for the highest selection by a Tiger in history. Adams was the first defensive player taken in the draft as well.
May 9, 2007 – It was announced by the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame that Jeff Davis would be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in December 2007. Davis was the third Clemson player to be inducted, joining Banks McFadden and Terry Kinard. He was the second member of Clemson’s 1981 National Championship team inducted as well.
Sept. 3, 2007 – Clemson opened the season with a 24-18 victory over No. 19 Florida State on Labor Day evening. The nationally-televised game on ESPN was the first on Labor Day for the Tiger program in 25 years. Cullen Harper became the first Tiger quarterback in history to beat a ranked team in his first career start. It was Clemson’s fourth win in the last five years over Florida State and it was the fifth straight win for the Tigers over a top-25 team, tying a school record.
Sept. 22, 2007 – Clemson defeated NC State on the road by a score of 42-20 behind 608 yards of total offense. Clemson gained 340 rushing yards behind 166 yards by James Davis and 114 by C.J. Spiller, while quarterback Cullen Harper threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns. The 608 yards were the most in Tiger history in an ACC road game.
Oct. 6, 2007 – Virginia Tech defeated Clemson 41-23 thanks to three returns for touchdowns. The No. 14 Hokies scored on an interception return, punt return and kickoff return to take a 31-8 lead. Clemson outgained Virginia Tech 380-219 thanks to 372 passing yards by Cullen Harper, but the Tigers still lost the game.
Oct. 20, 2007 – Clemson defeated eventual MAC Champion Central Michigan 70-14 behind five touchdown passes from Cullen Harper, which tied his own record that he set earlier in the year against ULM. Harper was 20-22 for 273 yards, as the Tiger scored 56 points in the second and third quarters combined. In fact, Clemson scored all 70 of its points in a 34:04 time period.
Nov. 10, 2007 – Clemson defeated defending ACC Champion Wake Forest 44-10 at Memorial Stadium. C.J. Spiller became the first Tiger in history to return a kickoff for a touchdown in consecutive games. He had an 84-yard return for a score against Duke the previous week and went 90 yards against the Demon Deacons.
Nov. 17, 2007 – The Tigers lost to No. 18 Boston College for the third year in a row by three points or less. The game decided the champion of the ACC Atlantic Division. Boston College scored on a 43-yard touchdown pass by Matt Ryan with just 1:46 left in the contest.
Nov. 24, 2007 – Mark Buchholz booted a 35-yard field goal on the last play of the game to give Clemson a 23-21 win at South Carolina. Cullen Harper connected with Aaron Kelly four times for 70 yards on the final drive to set up the game-winner. Clemson blocked two punts in the game, including one that was returned for a touchdown by La’Donte Harris.
Dec. 31, 2007 – C.J. Spiller won offensive MVP honors in the Chick-fil-A Bowl against No. 21 Auburn even though Clemson lost the game in overtime. Spiller became the first Tiger in history to have at least 100 rushing yards and 100 kickoff return yards in the same game. His performance included an 83-yard run, the longest touchdown play in a bowl game in Clemson history.
Oct. 13, 2008 – Head Coach Tommy Bowden resigned on this Monday morning after a meeting with Athletic Director Terry Don Phillips. That afternoon, Dabo Swinney was named interim head coach.
Oct. 18, 2008 – Dabo Swinney served his first game as head coach against Georgia Tech, just five days after he took over the program. He instituted the “Tiger Walk” prior to the game. Georgia Tech won the contest 21-17.
Nov. 1, 2008 – Clemson defeated Boston College in Chestnut Hill by a score of 27-21 to claim the first O’Rourke-McFadden Trophy, which is given to the winner of this rivalry game each year. It was Clemson’s first win over the Eagles in 50 years. C.J. Spiller had 242 all-purpose yards to win the first “Leather Helmet Award.” Aaron Kelly became Clemson’s career leader in receiving touchdowns when he hauled in his 19th on a four-yard reception from Cullen Harper in the fourth quarter. James Davis became Clemson’s career rushing touchdown leader when he ran for his 43rd on a 23-yard carry in the first quarter. It was Dabo Swinney’s first win as a head coach as well.
Nov. 29, 2008 – Clemson defeated South Carolina 31-14 to become bowl eligible for the 10th straight year. It was Dabo Swinney’s first game as a head coach in the rivalry game and it gave the Tigers four wins in the last five games of the season to finish on a strong note.
Dec. 1, 2008 – The interim tag was removed from Dabo Swinney’s title and he was named head coach of the Tigers.
Sept. 5, 2009 – C.J. Spiller took the opening kickoff of the season and raced 96 yards for a touchdown in Clemson’s 37-14 win over Middle Tennessee. It was the first time a Tiger returned the opening kickoff of a season for a touchdown.
Oct. 24, 2009 – Kyle Parker hit Jacoby Ford on a 26-yard touchdown pass on third-and-11 in overtime to lift Clemson to a 40-37 overtime victory at No. 8 Miami (Fla.). It tied for the highest-ranked team Clemson defeated on the road in school history. C.J. Spiller, playing in front of his father for the first time as a Tiger, gained 310 all-purpose yards to establish a school record. DeAndre McDaniel was named national defensive player-of-the-week for his two interceptions, including one that he returned 23 yards for a score. There were nine lead changes in the game, as neither team scored twice in a row.
Nov. 7, 2009 – C.J. Spiller gained a school-record 312 all-purpose yards in Clemson’s 40-24 victory over Florida State in what proved to be Bobby Bowden’s last appearance as Florida State’s head coach in Death Valley. Spiller had 165 rushing yards and 67 receiving yards. The victory gave Clemson wins over Florida State and Miami (Fla.) in the same season for the first time.
Nov. 14, 2009 – C.J. Spiller threw a touchdown pass, caught a touchdown pass and rushed for a touchdown in Clemson’s 43-23 win at NC State. Kyle Parker won the battle of quarterbacks (over Russell Wilson) who would be drafted by the Rockies the following June by completing 12-18 passes for 183 yards and two scores.
Nov. 21, 2009 – Clemson clinched the ACC Atlantic Division Championship with a 34-21 win over Virginia. The victory was the sixth in a row for the Tigers and moved the team to a No. 15 ranking in the AP poll.
Nov. 28, 2009 – C.J. Spiller returned the opening kickoff 88 yards for a touchdown at South Carolina. It was the seventh kickoff return for a score of his career, a new NCAA career mark. It was also the fourth of the season for Spiller, an ACC mark.
Dec. 5, 2009 – C.J. Spiller rushed for 233 yards and four touchdowns, but it was not enough as No. 12 Georgia Tech defeated Clemson 39-34 in the ACC Championship game at Tampa, Fla. Clemson averaged 9.5 yards per carry and 8.1 yards per play in the contest in which neither team punted. Both teams gained at least 300 rushing yards, the only college game in 2009 in which both teams had at least 300 yards on the ground.
Dec. 12, 2009 – C.J. Spiller finished sixth in the Heisman Trophy balloting announced this day. He had 26 first-place votes and 223 points in the balloting.
Sept. 4, 2010 – Dawson Zimmerman booted a 79-yard punt in a victory over North Texas, the second-longest punt in Clemson history at the time. He finished the day with a 51.0-yard net average on six punts, best in Clemson history.
Sept. 18, 2010 – Clemson lost a 27-24 overtime contest at Auburn, the closest it came to suffering a loss in the 2010 season. Auburn won the national title with a 14-0 record. Andre Ellington had 140 rushing yards and Kyle Parker passed for 220 yards to lead the Clemson offense, while Da’Quan Bowers had four tackles for loss.
Nov. 13, 2010 – Dustin Hopkins kicked a 55-yard field goal on the last play of the game to give Florida State a 16-13 victory over Clemson. Had the Tigers won that game, they would have been ACC Atlantic Division champions. Jamie Harper totaled 143 yards on 27 carries and nine receptions for 54 yard in the best all-around performance of his career. The nine receptions set a Clemson record for a running back.
Dec. 6, 2010 – Da’Quan Bowers won the Bronko Nagurski Award as the top defensive player in the nation according to the Football Writers of America. He became the first Tiger to win that award and the first to win any national position award since 1982, when Terry Kinard won the CBS Sports National Defensive Player-of-the-Year award. Bowers was presented the award at a banquet in Charlotte, N.C.
Sept. 17, 2011 – Clemson defeated defending National Champion Auburn 38-24 in Death Valley. The win elevated Clemson’s record against a defending National Champion in games played at Clemson to 3-0 and it ended Auburn’s 17-game winning streak, the longest winning streak snapped by a Clemson football team in history. The Tigers gained 624 yards of total offense, their most-ever against an SEC team.
Sept. 24, 2011 – Tajh Boyd passed for 344 yards and three touchdowns in leading Clemson to a 35-30 victory over No. 11 Florida State. Freshman Sammy Watkins had seven receptions for 141 yards and two touchdowns. The Tigers had 443 yards of total offense against a defense that finished the year fifth in the country in total defense.
Oct. 1, 2011 – Clemson defeated Virginia Tech for the first time in 22 years with a 23-3 victory in Blacksburg. Clemson held Virginia Tech to 258 yards of total offense. Virginia Tech was ranked No. 10 entering the game and the victory gave Clemson three straight wins over top-20 AP-ranked teams, a first for an ACC team.
Oct. 15, 2011 – Sammy Watkins set a school record with 345 all-purpose yards in Clemson’s 56-45 win at Maryland. He had an 89-yard kickoff return for a score and added two receiving touchdowns. Clemson overcame an 18-point deficit to win the game.
Oct. 22, 2011 – Kourtnei Brown had two returns for touchdowns in Clemson 59-38 win over North Carolina. Brown became the first Clemson defensive player to score two touchdowns in one game since 1954. Tajh Boyd tied a Tiger record for passing touchdowns with five. Clemson scored all 59 of its points in the first three quarters.
Oct. 23, 2011 – With an 8-0 record, Clemson moved up to No. 5 in the nation in the BCS standings, its first top-five mark in school history.
Nov. 12, 2011 – Chandler Catanzaro booted a 43-yard field goal on the last play of the game to give Clemson a 31-28 victory over Wake Forest and clinch the ACC Atlantic Division title. It was Clemson’ first walkoff kick in regulation in Memorial Stadium.
Dec. 3, 2011 – Clemson won its first ACC title in 20 years with a 38-10 win over Virginia Tech in Charlotte. Virginia Tech was ranked No. 3 in the nation in the coaches poll and the win tied for the highest-ranked team Clemson beat in its history. Tajh Boyd was named MVP, as he completed 20-29 passes for 240 yards and three scores. The win clinched Clemson’s first Orange Bowl berth in 30 years.
Dec. 7, 2011 – Dwayne Allen was named winner of the John Mackey Award as the nation’s top tight end. He became the first offensive player in Clemson history to win a national position award.
Dec. 15, 2011 – Dwayne Allen and Sammy Watkins were both named AP First-Team All-Americans. Allen was the first Clemson tight end named to the first team since Bennie Cunningham in 1975. Watkins became just the fourth first-year freshman in college football history to be named an AP First-Team All-American.
Dec. 31, 2011 – Head Coach Dabo Swinney was named the winner of the Bobby Dodd National Coach-of-the-Year Award. It marked the first time a Clemson head coach won a national coach-of-the-year award since Danny Ford in 1981.
Sept. 1, 2012 – DeAndre Hopkins set a school record with 13 receptions, including the go-ahead touchdown catch in the fourth quarter, in Clemson’s 26-19 win over No. 25 Auburn to open the season in the Georgia Dome.
Sept. 8, 2012 – Spencer Benton set an ACC and Clemson record when he booted a 61-yard field goal on the last play of the first half against Ball State at Memorial Stadium. It was the only field goal he made all season in three attempts, all 55 yards or longer.
Oct. 20, 2012 – Clemson defeated Virginia Tech 38-17 at Memorial Stadium, its third win over the Hokies in a two-year span. All three wins were by 20 points or more.
Nov. 17, 2012 – In a wild shootout that saw the Tigers amass 754 yards on 102 plays, Clemson defeated NC State 62-48 at Memorial Stadium. The Tigers trailed 24-13 in the second quarter, but scored the game’s next 42 points to pull away. It gave Clemson a final ACC regular-season record of 7-1, the first time it ever won seven league games, and 13 straight wins at Death Valley to set a stadium record. Tajh Boyd, who set a school record with 529 total yards, totaled five passing touchdowns for the third time in four games.
Nov. 26, 2012 – Six of the 11 players on the First-Team All-ACC offense were from Clemson. It was the first time since 1995 (Florida State) that a team had six First-Team All-ACC players on offense and the first time Clemson accomplished that feat. Tajh Boyd (QB), Andre Ellington (RB), Brandon Ford (TE), Dalton Freeman (C), DeAndre Hopkins (WR) and Brandon Thomas (OT) all received First-Team All-ACC honors.
Nov. 28, 2012 – Tajh Boyd was named ACC Player-of-the-Year, the first Tiger quarterback to win the award since Steve Fuller (1978). Boyd passed for 3,896 yards and 36 touchdowns while completing 67.2 percent of his passes.
Dec. 31, 2012 – Chandler Catanzaro kicked a 37-yard field goal as time expired to give Clemson a 25-24 win over No. 7 LSU in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. The ACC Tigers trailed 24-13 entering the fourth quarter, but scored the final 12 points for the dramatic victory. It was Clemson’s 11th win of the season, its highest total since its National Championship season of 1981 (12-0), and gave the Tigers a final USA Today ranking of No. 9.
Aug. 31, 2013 – Clemson defeated No. 5 Georgia 38-35 in front of 84,350 fans at Death Valley. Clemson was ranked No. 8 and the win gave the Tigers consecutive wins over top-10 SEC teams. Clemson became the first non-conference school to win consecutive games against top-10 SEC teams. Sammy Watkins had a 77-yard receiving touchdown from Tajh Boyd, who threw three passing touchdowns and ran for two others. Danny Ford was inducted into the Clemson Ring of Honor prior to the game. ESPN College GameDay was also in town prior to the game.
Nov. 2, 2013 – No. 8 Clemson defeated Virginia 59-10 in Charlottesville, as Tajh Boyd passed for 377 yards and Sammy Watkins had eight receptions for 169 yards. That included a 96-yard receiving touchdown in the second half, one of the longest pass plays in Clemson history.
Nov. 23, 2013 – Clemson defeated The Citadel 52-6 on Military Appreciation Day. The highlight came when U.S. Army veteran Daniel Rodriguez had a two-yard receiving touchdown from Cole Stoudt in the fourth quarter, the first score of the Purple Heart recipients career. It was also the final home game of Tajh Boyd’s career, who completed 21-28 passes for 288 yards and five passing touchdowns. Sammy Watkins became Clemson’s career leader in receiving yards in the game, breaking the record of 3,020 by his former teammate, DeAndre Hopkins.
Nov. 27, 2013 – Chad Morris was named National Assistant Coach-of-the-Year by the AFCA.
Jan. 3, 2014 – Clemson concluded its 11-win season with 40-35 victory over No. 6 Ohio State. It gave Clemson wins over a top-10 team to end the season in consecutive year, the only FBS team to do that in 2012,13. Sammy Watkins set an Orange Bowl and Clemson record with 16 catches for 227 yards and two scores. Tajh Boyd had 505 yards of total offense and accounted for six touchdowns in his final game. He also had a career-high 127 rushing yards. Vic Beasley had a Clemson bowl game record four tackles for loss. Stanton Seckinger caught what proved to be the winning touchdown on a pass from Boyd in the fourth quarter. It was the 32nd win as a starting quarterback for Boyd, tying the career record held by Rodney Williams (1985-88).
Jan. 7, 2014 – Clemson was ranked No. 7 in the final USA Today poll and No. 8 in the final AP poll. Both were the best final rankings for the program since the Tigers won the 1981 national title.
Sept. 27, 2014 – Making his first start, freshman Deshaun Watson set a Clemson record with six touchdown passes in a 50-35 win over North Carolina. It was the first time in history Clemson has scored exactly 50 points in a game.
Oct. 11, 2014 – Vic Beasley became Clemson’s all-time sack leader in a 23-17 win over Louisville. He recorded a three-yard sack in the first half, his 29th as a Tiger, one better than Michael Dean Perry and Gaines Adams had accumulated. Clemson scored a touchdown on a 72-yard punt return by Adam Humphries and a fumble recovery by Tavaris Barnes. DeShawn Williams deflected a pass at the goal line on Louisville’s last play to preserve the win. Ten defensive players from this game would be drafted the following May.
Nov. 29, 2014 – Playing with a torn ACL, Deshaun Watson threw for two scores and ran for two others in Clemson’s 35-17 win over South Carolina that ended the Gamecocks’ record five-game winning streak in the series. Artavis Scott had seven catches for 185 yards and two scores, the most receiving yards by a Clemson player against South Carolina and the most ever by a Tiger in Death Valley. Wayne Gallman added 191 yards rushing in 27 carries, the second most rushing yards by a Tiger against South Carolina.
Dec. 29, 2014 – Clemson concluded the season with its 10th victory, a 40-6 win over No. 24 Oklahoma. Cole Stoudt earned MVP honors by throwing for 319 yards and three touchdowns as the Tigers’ 34-point win tied a school record for victory margin over a ranked opponent. The win gave Clemson three straight bowl wins over opposing coaches that had won the national championship, a first in college football history.
Oct. 3, 2015 – Clemson defeated sixth-ranked Notre Dame in the first meeting between the two teams since 1979. In a torrential downpour, the Tigers jumped out to a big lead and escaped with a 24-22 win in the final seconds as Carlos Watkins led a host of tacklers that stopped the Fighting Irish’s two-point try.
Oct. 24, 2015 – Clemson tied the program’s largest margin of victory against an ACC opponent and gave Miami (Fla.) its worst defeat in history with a 58-0 rout in Sun Life Stadium. The Tigers rushed for over 400 yards in the victory.
Nov. 3, 2015 – The Tigers were ranked No. 1 in the College Football Playoff poll for the first time in history. Clemson would go on to be ranked first in each of the six polls released during the season.
Dec. 5, 2015 – The running tandem of Deshaun Watson and Wayne Gallman led Clemson to a thrilling 45-37 win over North Carolina in the ACC Championship Game, cementing Clemson’s place as the No. 1 seed for the College Football Playoff.
Dec. 9, 2015 – Dabo Swinney was named Home Depot National Coach-of-the-Year, the first of 10 the Tiger coach would receive from a national standpoint. He was also the ACC Coach-of-the-Year.
Dec. 12, 2015 – Deshaun Watson, Clemson’s first Heisman Trophy finalist in history, finished third in the voting for the top award in college football. He was the first player in FBS history to pass for over 4,000 yards and rush over 1,000 in the same season.
Dec. 31, 2015 – For a second straight bowl game and fourth consecutive year against a coach that had previously won a national championship, Clemson beat Bob Stoops’ Oklahoma team in the Orange Bowl, 37-17. The win was the 14th of the season, a school record.
Jan. 11, 2016 – Clemson played for the National Championship against Alabama. The Crimson Tide won, 45-40, but Deshaun Watson set a championship game record with 478 yards of total offense.
Jan. 16, 2016 – Dabo Swinney wins the Bear Bryant Award as the National Coach of the Year. It is the 11th coach of the year award for Swinney for his efforts in the 2015 season.
April 23, 2016 – For the sixth year in a row Clemson is ranked in the top 10 percent in the nation in terms of APR scores. It is the fifth year in a row Clemson is in the top 10 percent in APR scores and the top 25 of the final AP poll, the only school in the country that can make that claim.
April 28-30, 2016 – Clemson has nine players selected in the NFL draft, second most in the nation and second most in one draft in school history.
Oct. 1, 2016 – Clemson wins a meeting of top five teams in a 42-36 victory over No. 3 Louisville. The game would prove to be a meeting of the top two contenders for the Heisman trophy as Louisville’s Lamar Jackson and Clemson’s Deshaun Watson took their teams up and down the field. But the game’s biggest play proved to be a tackle at the two-yard line by Clemson’s Marcus Edmond in the final seconds of the game.
Nov. 26, 2016 – Clemson finishes the regular season with a 56-7 victory over rival South Carolina. It is the largest victory margin in history for any ACC team against an SEC team. Deshaun Watson throws six touchdown passes, three to Mike Williams, both Clemson records in the rivalry.
Dec. 3, 2016 – Clemson wins its second consecutive ACC title with a 42-35 victory over Virginia Tech in Orlando. It is the first time since the 1986-88 era that Clemson has won consecutive ACC titles.
Dec. 31, 2016 – In one of the most dominating performances in Clemson history, the Tigers defeated No. 2 Ohio State 31-0 in the College Football Playoff semifinals at the Fiesta Bowl in Arizona. It is the first time an Urban Meyer coached team has been shutout and the first time Ohio State has been shut out since 1993. It is the first time Clemson has defeated the No. 2 ranked team.
Jan. 9, 2017 – Clemson won its second national title in history and first in 35 years with a 35-31 win over No. 1 Alabama, who had entered the game with a 26-game winning streak. Hunter Renfrow scored the winning touchdown with one second remaining on a two-yard pass from Deshaun Watson. It is Clemson’s first win over the nation’s top-ranked team. It is the fifth consecutive year Clemson has won a bowl game over a coach who has previously won the national championship.
Jan. 10, 2017 – Clemson is the No. 1 ranked team in the final AP and USA Today polls. The Tigers achieved the championship by playing the nation’s toughest schedule. Six teams Clemson defeated are ranked in the final Top 25.
Jan. 16, 2017 – Dabo Swinney is the recipient of the Bear Bryant National Coach of the Year award for the second consecutive year. He is the first coach to win the award in consecutive years.
Feb. 1, 2017 – Clemson football program moves into its new state-of-the-art Reeves Football Facility. The facility is connected to the Poe Indoor Football Facility, giving Clemson one of the top facilities in the nation.
April 27, 2017 – Mike Williams and Deshaun Watson are both selected within the first 12 picks of the NFL draft. It is the first time Clemson has had two top 12 picks in the same draft and the second time in three years Clemson has had two first-round selections. It gives Swinney six first-round draft picks in four years.
June 12, 2017 – The Clemson football team goes to the White House and is honored by President Donald Trump for its national championship.
Sept. 9, 2017 – In a battle of outstanding defenses, Clemson defeated Auburn for the fourth time in a row by a score of 14-6. Brent Venables’ defense recorded 11 sacks, second most in school history and most against an FBS school. Austin Bryant led the way with four sacks, most in history by a Tiger against an SEC team. Clemson allowed -15 rushing yards and just 25 total yards in the second half against the only team to beat eventual national champion Alabama in 2017.
Sept. 16, 2017 – Clemson defeated No. 14 Louisville on the road 47-21 in one of the Tigers’ top all-around performances in recent years. Kelly Bryant had a career-high 316 passing yards and added 26 rushing yards, as Clemson gained 613 total yards. Defending Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson had 381 total yards, but 200 came in the fourth quarter when the game had long been decided.
Sept. 30, 2017 – Clemson defeated No. 12 Virginia Tech 31-17 on the road. With the victory, Clemson became the first school in the history of the AP poll to beat three top-15 teams in the month of September. Dorian O’Daniel keyed the defense with a 22-yard interception return for a touchdown and was named national defensive player-of-the-week.
Nov. 11, 2017 – Clemson scored the last 14 points of the game to defeat Florida State 31-14 and clinch its third straight ACC Atlantic Division championship. It was the Tigers’ third straight win over Florida State, something Clemson had not done since 2005-07.
Nov. 25, 2017 – Clemson defeated rival South Carolina for the fourth straight year behind the receiving of Hunter Renfrow and a defense that allowed just 207 yards and 10 points. Renfrow had two receiving touchdowns, including a 61-yard catch, where he eluded the entire South Carolina defense.
Dec. 2, 2017 – Clemson won its third straight ACC title with a 38-3 win over No. 7 Miami (Fla.). It was the largest margin of victory in an ACC Championship Game and Clemson’s largest victory margin in any game against a ranked opponent. Kelly Bryant completed 15 straight passes at one point and finished 23-29 passing for 252 yards. He was also named the game’s MVP.
Sept. 29, 2018 – After a week in which Kelly Bryant elected to transfer after Trevor Lawrence was named the starting quarterback, Lawrence exited a game against Syracuse due to injury in the second quarter. Quarterback Chase Brice helped Clemson overcome a 10-point fourth quarter deficit in a 27-23 win, completing a fourth-and-six pass to Tee Higgins on the game-winning drive, leading to a game-winning touchdown run by Travis Etienne with 41 seconds remaining.
Dec. 1, 2018 – Travis Etienne scored on a 75-yard touchdown run on the game’s first play from scrimmage as Clemson blasted Pittsburgh 42-10 in the ACC Championship Game at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. Clemson became the first team in ACC history to win the conference outright in four straight seasons.
Dec. 4, 2018 – Christian Wilkins became the first recipient of the William V. Campbell Trophy in Clemson history, accepting the award known as the “Academic Heisman Trophy” from the National Football Foundation in New York.
Dec. 29, 2018 – Clemson appeared in the Cotton Bowl for the first time since Jan. 1, 1940. Clemson defeated Notre Dame 30-3 in a College Football Playoff semifinal game that represented the first matchup of undefeated teams in CFP history.
Jan. 7, 2019 – Clemson finished the first 15-0 season in major college football since 1897 with a 44-16 victory against top-ranked Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. The win was the 55th by Clemson’s 2018 senior class, tying for the most in college football history.
Jan. 9, 2019 – Head Coach Dabo Swinney became the first three-time winner in the history of the Paul “Bear” Bryant Award, collecting the honor in Houston, Texas. It was one of several coach-of-the-year honors earned by Swinney for the 2018 season, including ACC Coach-of-the-Year and the Woody Hayes Award from the Touchdown Club of Columbus (Ohio).
Jan. 14, 2019 – Members of Clemson’s 2018 national championship squad were honored by President Donald Trump during a visit to the White House.
April 25, 2019 – Clemson made history, becoming the first school to have three players selected as defensive linemen in the first round of an NFL draft. The Oakland Raiders selected Clelin Ferrell No. 4 overall, followed by the Miami Dolphins’ selection of Christian Wilkins at No. 13 and the New York Giants’ pick of Dexter Lawrence at No. 17. Six Tigers in all were selected in the draft in Nashville, Tenn.
Aug. 29, 2019 – On a Thursday night in Death Valley, Clemson hosted the first live football game ever aired on ACC Network, which launched a week earlier. In front of a new television audience and with a special edition of ESPN College GameDay on site from Memorial Stadium’s northeast corner, the Tigers steamrolled Georgia Tech 52-14 behind 205 rushing yards from Travis Etienne, including the longest run in Memorial Stadium history (90 yards).
Sept. 21, 2019 – Clemson defeated Charlotte 52-10. At halftime, parts of the movie “Safety” were filmed on the field with actors in Clemson and Florida Atlantic uniforms. The movie documented the life of former Tiger Ray Ray McElrathbey.
Sept. 28, 2019 – Clemson saved its undefeated regular season with a 21-20 win at North Carolina. Tied 14-14 in the fourth quarter, Clemson took the lead on a 38-yard Trevor Lawrence touchdown pass to Tee Higgins. The Tar Heels pulled within one with 1:17 remaining, but Clemson stopped a two-point attempt and recovered an onside kick attempt to preserve the victory.
Oct. 12, 2019 – Clemson won its 750th game in program history with a 45-14 home win against Florida State. Clemson became the 15th FBS program, and the first in the ACC, to total 750 wins all-time.
Nov. 9, 2019 – Clemson’s “Orange Britches” added another anecdote to their history in Raleigh. Clemson warmed up in all-white for a primetime game against NC State, but upon learning that Wake Forest had lost to Virginia Tech and a Clemson win that evening would clinch an ACC Atlantic Division title, Head Coach Dabo Swinney gathered his team at the end of warmups and hollered “get them orange pants on. Let’s go!” The players, who did not know the orange pants had traveled with the team, changed and led the Tigers to a 55-10 win.
Nov. 30, 2019 – Running back Travis Etienne scored two touchdowns in a 38-3 win at South Carolina, breaking ACC records for career touchdowns and career rushing touchdowns previously held by Pittsburgh’s James Conner.
Dec. 7, 2019 – Clemson scored an ACC Championship Game record 62 points in a 62-17 win over No. 22 Virginia in Charlotte. The win was the Tigers’ 19th ACC title (and 25th conference title overall) and made Clemson the first team in history to win five consecutive conference championship games.
Dec. 8, 2019 – In the midst of Clemson’s College Football Playoff Selection Show watch party, Matt Butkus, the son of Pro Football and College Football Hall of Famer Dick Butkus, arrived for a surprise presentation to award the 2019 Butkus Award to Isaiah Simmons as the nation’s top linebacker.
Dec. 28, 2019 – Clemson advanced to its fourth national championship game in five years in thrilling fashion, overcoming an early 16-0 deficit to defeat Ohio State 29-23 in the Fiesta Bowl. The 16-point comeback was Clemson fifth-largest comeback in school history and was secured when Nolan Turner recorded the Tigers’ second interception of Justin Fields (who had entered the game with only one interception on the season) in the endzone with 37 seconds to play.
Jan. 13, 2020 – Clemson’s ACC-record-tying 29-game winning streak came to an end with LSU’s 42-25 win in the CFP National Championship Game. In the contest, Travis Etienne, playing in his home state of Louisiana, became Clemson’s first 4,000-yard career rusher and passed Raymond Priester to become the Tigers’ all-time leading rusher.
April 23, 2020 – Clemson produced multiple first-round draft picks for the second straight year, a first in school history, when NFL teams selected Isaiah Simmons (No. 8 overall by the Cardinals) and A.J. Terrell (No. 16 overall by the Falcons) in the first round. In all, seven Clemson players heard their names called in the draft, held remotely in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sept. 12, 2020 – Clemson played its first game under COVID-19 protocols, earning a 37-13 win at Wake Forest in a primetime game played in front of an announced crowd of 68 people. A week later, Clemson’s 49-0 win against The Citadel in the Tigers’ home opener welcomed an announced crowd of 18,609 because of pandemic restrictions, the smallest crowd at Memorial Stadium since a 1964 contest against Virginia.
Oct. 31, 2020 – With quarterback Trevor Lawrence out with COVID-19, Clemson overcame an 18-point first half deficit in freshman DJ Uiagalelei’s first career start to earn a 34-28 win against Boston College at Memorial Stadium. The 18-point comeback was the second largest in school history and the largest in the history of Death Valley. Travis Etienne had 264 all-purpose yards, including a 15-yard run on the final play of the third quarter in which he passed NC State’s Ted Brown (4,602, 1975-78) to become the ACC’s all-time leading rusher. He also set a Clemson single-game running back record with 140 receiving yards.
Nov. 7, 2020 – No. 1 Clemson’s ACC-record 36-game regular-season winning streak came to an end with a 47-40 double-overtime loss at No. 4 Notre Dame with Trevor Lawrence still sidelined with COVID-19. With Notre Dame joining the ACC as a temporary member in 2020, the game represented the highest combined ranking of any conference game in ACC history, a combined ranking later matched when No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 3 Clemson played again in the ACC Championship Game. The game was broadcast on NBC, Clemson’s first appearance on the network since 1983, but also aired in part on USA Network as NBC cut to live coverage of an acceptance speech by President-Elect Joe Biden in the first half.
Nov. 21, 2020 – Clemson had traveled to Tallahassee in preparation for a noon game against Florida State. As the team congregated for breakfast to eat and then load buses for the stadium, word came from the ACC that the game would not be played after the teams’ medical staffs could not mutually agree on proceeding with the contest. It marked the first time Clemson had a game postponed after the team had already traveled to the site since 1963, when the Tigers were slated to play South Carolina on Saturday, Nov. 23, but had the contest postponed following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
Nov. 28, 2020 – Clemson played its first game in 21 days when it routed Pittsburgh 52-17 on Senior Day in Death Valley. The 21-day layoff was Clemson’s longest stint between regular-season games in a season since 1918, a year in which Clemson went 28 days between games against Georgia Tech and South Carolina. That season was also impacted by a global pandemic in addition to being affected by World War I.
Dec. 1, 2020 – Disney announced running back Darien Rencher as the recipient of the 2020 Disney Spirit Award. The beloved walk-on had grown into a team and community leader, helping lead the Clemson Community Peaceful Demonstration in June amid national turmoil as well as organized the #WeWantToPlay campaign in August that mobilized college football players across the country in support of playing safely in the midst of the pandemic when it appeared that the 2020 season was going to be in jeopardy.
Dec. 5, 2020 – It did not officially count as a division title in a division-less season, but Clemson clinched an ACC Championship Game berth with a 45-10 win at Virginia Tech, making Clemson the first Power Five conference team ever to appear in six consecutive conference championship games. It was also Clemson’s second-latest regular-season finale, behind only a Dec. 8 contest against The Citadel to end the 1928 regular season.
Dec. 19, 2020 – No. 3 Clemson pummeled No. 2 Notre Dame 34-10 in the ACC Championship Game in Charlotte to earn its sixth consecutive ACC championship. That day, Clemson and Oklahoma became the first teams in any active conference to win six straight outright titles and the first teams in the Power Five to win six straight titles outright in any conference since Oklahoma (12, 1948-59) as a member of the since-dissolved Big 8 Conference.
Jan. 5, 2021 – Quarterback Trevor Lawrence was one of four Heisman Trophy finalists and finished second in voting behind Alabama wide receiver DeVonta Smith. The ceremony came four days after his final game at Clemson, concluding his career with a 34-2 record as a starter.
April 29, 2021 – Quarterback Trevor Lawrence became the first No. 1 overall pick in Clemson football history when he was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars atop the 2021 NFL draft, making Clemson the 51st program ever to produce a No. 1 pick. With the No. 25 overall pick, the Jaguars used their second first-round selection to choose running back Travis Etienne, making Lawrence and Etienne the first quarterback/running back duo from a school ever drafted by one team in the first round of an NFL draft in the common draft era. In all, five Tigers, all from the offense, were selected during the three-day draft.
Sept. 5, 2021 – After a hard-fought 10-3 season-opening loss to eventual national champion Georgia the night before, Clemson ranked No. 6 in the AP poll, ending a streak of 57 consecutive polls ranked in the top five, the second-longest streak in poll history.
Sept. 18, 2021 – Clemson defeated Georgia Tech 14-8 in a game that included a lightning delay of one hour and 52 minutes (including an observed halftime in that window). It was the longest weather delay in Death Valley history, surpassing weather delays on Oct. 12, 1963 (20-minute halftime delay vs. Georgia), Sept. 4, 1993 (17-minute fourth-quarter delay vs. UNLV) and Sept. 19, 2009 (55-minute third-quarter delay and a 48-minute fourth-quarter delay vs. Boston College).
Nov. 27, 2021 – Clemson shut out South Carolina 30-0 to give Clemson a series-record-tying seventh straight win against the Gamecocks. The shutout, which featured two interceptions by Andrew Booth Jr., was Clemson’s first shutout of South Carolina since 1989.
Dec. 5 & 10, 2021 – In a span of six days, two long-time Clemson assistants were announced as head coaches at Power Five Conference schools. Oklahoma named 10-year Clemson Defensive Coordinator Brent Venables as its head coach on Dec. 5, and Virginia named 11-year Clemson Assistant Coach (and seven-year Offensive Coordinator) Tony Elliott to its head position on Dec. 10.
Dec. 7, 2021 – In a ceremony in Las Vegas, Nev., the National Football Foundation inducted running back C.J. Spiller into the College Football Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2021. Spiller, who earned the honor in only his second year of eligibility, became Clemson’s first inductee since Danny Ford in 2017.
Dec. 29, 2021 – Despite being without the services of 30 scholarship players from its initial camp roster, Clemson battled to a 20-13 win against Iowa State in the Cheez-It Bowl in Orlando, Fla. to extend its streak of consecutive 10-win seasons to 11. The win was Dabo Swinney’s 150th in 186 career games, making him the sixth-fastest head coach in FBS history (and fourth fastest in the modern era) to reach 150 career victories.
Feb. 10, 2022 – The South Carolina House of Representatives introduced and adopted resolution H. 4943, which recognized and honored long-time Clemson head athletic trainer Danny Poole for nearly 40 years of service to Clemson student-athletes as he transitioned from that role into an administrative position with the football program.
Sept. 10, 2022 – During its home opener, Clemson debuted a number of enhancements to Memorial Stadium, none larger than a new 126-foot-wide and 56.5-foot-tall videoboard colloquially nicknamed “DaboTron.” The stadium enhancements also included new ribbonboards and LED stadium lighting for individual spotlighting of Howard’s Rock pregame among many other uses.
Oct. 1, 2022 – In advance of a top-10 matchup with NC State, ESPN’s College GameDay returned to Bowman Field for the first time since exactly six years earlier prior to Clemson’s top-five matchup with Louisville that year. Clemson made 17 appearances on the program — nine at neutral sites, six on the road, and two in Memorial Stadium under unique circumstances — in the time between Bowman Field shows. That evening, No. 5 Clemson rolled to a 30-20 win over No. 10 NC State.
Oct. 22, 2022 – Death Valley hosted its first matchup of two undefeated teams 6-0 or better in the facility’s then-81-year history when 7-0 Clemson welcomed 6-0 Syracuse. It was only the fourth all-time meeting of two ACC teams 6-0 or better, joining the 1997 Florida State/North Carolina game, 2013 Florida State/Miami game and the first Clemson/Notre Dame game in 2020. Behind reserve quarterback Cade Klubnik, Clemson overcame a 14-point second quarter deficit, and a late interception by R.J. Mickens secured a 27-21 comeback victory for the Tigers’ ACC-record-setting 38th consecutive home win.
Nov. 19, 2022 – Clemson held Miami (Fla.) to 98 total yards, the third-fewest in the Hurricanes’ storied history, in a 40-10 win. It was the final win in Clemson’s 40-game home winning streak from 2016-22, an ACC record and tied with the 1907-18 Notre Dame Fighting Irish for the eighth-longest streak in FBS history.
Nov. 29, 2022 – Running back Will Shipley comprised three of Clemson’s conference-best 12 All-ACC selections, earning first-team honors in the running back, all-purpose and specialist categories. He became the first player in ACC history to accomplish the feat en route to being one of four finalists for the Paul Hornung Award, presented annually to the nation’s most versatile player.
Dec. 3, 2022 – Clemson earned its 21st ACC title and 27th conference title, thrashing North Carolina, 39-10, in Charlotte. The win gave Clemson a postseason victory (conference championship, bowl game and/or national championship game) in 12 consecutive seasons, the longest FBS streak on record. Clemson also became the first program in an active Power Five conference to win seven outright conference titles in an eight-year span since Alabama won eight SEC titles in nine seasons from 1971-79.
April 27, 2023 – Clemson had multiple players selected in the first round of an NFL draft for the fourth time in a five-year span when the Cincinnati Bengals and New Orleans Saints selected Myles Murphy and Bryan Bresee, respectively, in the first round. With their consecutive selections at the No. 28 and No. 29 picks, Clemson produced back-to-back first-round picks in a single draft for the first time in program history.
Sept. 9, 2023 – Clemson christened its updated Tiger Walk plaza to the west of Memorial Stadium with a ribbon cutting featuring Dabo Swinney and cornerstone partners Jim and Candace Brown. Featuring era-specific in-ground plaques denoting every team captain in program history, the reimagined Tiger Walk space was updated to honor legends of Clemson’s past and create a 365-day destination for Tiger fans as a permanent encapsulation of Clemson Football’s history and tradition.
Sept. 30, 2023 – With a 31-14 win at Syracuse, Dabo Swinney earned his 100th career ACC regular season victory, matching Frank Howard’s school record for conference victories. Howard went 100-48-5 in conference play across the Southern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference. Swinney passed Howard with a win against Wake Forest the following week.
Nov. 4, 2023 – Dabo Swinney became the winningest coach in Clemson history as Clemson defeated No. 12 Notre Dame, 31-23, at Death Valley. The victory was the 166th of his career, pushing him past Frank Howard (165 from 1940-69) for the record. The win also moved Clemson to 5-0 against starting quarterback Sam Hartman during his tenures at Wake Forest and Notre Dame, making Clemson the first Power Five team to defeat a starting quarterback five times since the Miami Hurricanes posted a 5-0 record against the Florida State Seminoles in games started by quarterback Chris Rix from 2001-04.
Nov. 25, 2023 – Clemson earned a 16-7 win at South Carolina to join Alabama as the only programs to win 150 games since 2011. With a scoop-and-score and an interception on consecutive plays from scrimmage by South Carolina, freshman safety Khalil Barnes became the first Clemson player to record a takeaway on consecutive plays from scrimmage by an opponent since Brian Dawkins against Duke in 1995. Linebacker Barrett Carter would then repeat the feat in the fourth quarter Clemson’s next game, an 11-point comeback win against Kentucky in the 2023 Gator Bowl.
