Clemson Quotes on Miami and Virginia Tech Joining the ACC

June 30, 2003

Clemson Head Football Coach Tommy Bowden “We have made the ACC much stronger in football. Either Miami or Virginia Tech have played in the National Championship game three of the last four years. We just added two top 10 programs to our conference. It certainly enhances our conference’s credibility on a national scale.

“I know our players, our coaching staff, and our fans will be excited to see those teams play at Clemson. Having Miami in the league will give us an ACC presence in South Florida, and help our recruiting efforts in that area. There are many outstanding prospects there.

“Clemson has not played Miami in several years, but we have first hand knowledge of the level of play at Virginia Tech having played them in 1999 and 2000.

Clemson Head Basketball Coach Oliver Purnell “From an overall conference standpoint, this is a positive. From a basketball standpoint we have added two schools who have the ability to be excellent. Miami and Virginia Tech have not been as successful in men’s basketball as they have in football in recent years, but they have been historically outstanding and competitive programs. Miami won the Big East recently and Virginia Tech has had some outstanding teams also, especially under former Clemson Coach Bill Foster. Joining the ACC will certainly help those programs move forward.”

Clemson Women’s Basketball Coach Jim Davis “We have added two outstanding women’s basketball programs to our already very competitive league. We have played both Miami and Virginia Tech in recent years and they have had outstanding teams. We played Miami in the NCAA Tournament and met Virginia Tech in the regular season. They have very solid programs with outstanding coaches. We look forward to competing with Miami and Virginia Tech on the basketball court. The addition of Miami might also help us in recruiting efforts in South Florida.”

Clemson Sophomore Cornerback Justin Miller “I look at it as a great opportunity to make us better. When you play quality competition it makes you better. Virginia Tech and Miami are obviously among the best programs in the nation. All players like to compete against the best teams in the nation as often as possible. I am looking forward to playing those schools.”

Clemson Head Baseball Coach Jack Leggett “This makes us a Super Conference in baseball. We were already one of the top baseball leagues in the nation. It will be very competitive. I hope we will play every other team in the league each year, giving us 30 conference games instead of 24. It will be a great challenge every weekend. Everyone knows how successful Miami’s program has been winning National championships in recent years. But, Virginia Tech has an excellent program as well. That is a difficult place to play.”