It is a busy, exciting time for Clemson Athletics. On Wednesday of this week, I will have the opportunity to say hello to our Board of Trustees during their meeting in Columbia. Later on Wednesday, I will fly to Fort Lauderdale, FL along with our Faculty Representative Janie Hodge to represent Clemson at the Atlantic Coast Conference annual winter meetings.
Although this year’s agenda is not yet finalized, we will certainly discuss the transitioning of Pittsburgh and Syracuse into our league. We will also figure out how the additions of Louisville and Notre Dame will assimilate into our future football schedules. The inclusion of not only the five annual football games – but also Olympic sports across the board – makes Notre Dame a very valuable addition to our brand.
Speaking of the football schedule, we have learned who our eight conference opponents will be for 2013. Our television partners will be on hand at the meetings to tell us how that process is shaping up. We will also get together as a group to discuss the long-term potential of an ACC television network. Does the idea make sense? Is it even feasible? These are some of the questions we hope to answer as we move forward.
We will be introduced to the ACC’s new director of football operations, Michael Strickland. He takes over for Michael Kelly – who did a tremendous job. Michael has moved on to serve as a new coordinator within the Bowl Championship Series playoff. The winter meetings serve as a precursor to our annual spring meetings that will be held in May.
Back home, we have much to celebrate. National Signing Day is just around the corner for a number of sports, including football. Coach Swinney and his staff have done a tremendous job on the recruiting trail. Please be sure to visit ClemsonTigers.com regularly to watch our second annual live recruiting show. In addition, we hope many of you were able to purchase tickets to the Fort Hill Clemson Club recruiting wrap-up that will be held on Feb. 6 at Jervey Gym.
Just a reminder, if you submit at least 50% of your IPTAY pledge by Feb. 15, you will receive an application for season tickets in the mail next month. If you have recently moved, please make sure the staff has your updated address in the computer system in order to receive the application.
We are excited to have the annual IPTAY national meeting in Clemson this year! Columbia has been a great home for this event for a number of years, but we look forward to seeing many of the faithful Tiger supporters in our own backyard on Saturday, Feb. 16.
Finally, we want to give special congratulations to Head Baseball Coach Jack Leggett, whose team took to the practice field for the first time this past weekend. Coach Leggett was named to the 2014 Hall of Fame Class by the American Baseball Coaches Association – a truly deserving honor.
We also send well wishes for a speedy recovery to President Jim Barker, who has progressed well following open heart surgery last week.
Go Tigers!
Dan Radakovich
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