Note: The following appears in the Charleston Southern football digital gameday guide, available HERE.
Chapman Pendergrass is in his fifth and final season as a Tiger. His path to where he is today looks very different compared to his teammates. While most arrived as highly recruited prospects, “Chap” arrived as a preferred walk-on from T.L. Hanna High School, just a 30-minute drive down the road from Clemson.
“Clemson's always been a dream. My story was a little different than most, because I was actually a preferred walk-on. I wasn't offered. Most of the guys here were highly recruited, so I walked on the team in 2022, and it's been a dream come true.”
For Pendergrass, growing up just down the road has shaped a special relationship with Clemson. Getting to play in front of his hometown crowd has been one of the best parts of his journey.
“It’s everything. That's why you do it. It's nice having all my family right here. They’re at every game and you see your friends at the game from high school. It’s been awesome.”
While Pendergrass had always thought about playing at Clemson, it was not the only school he considered. Before landing on Clemson, he visited Virginia Tech, Coastal Carolina, App State and South Carolina. One thing made a difference in his decision.
“The people. The people at Clemson are second to none. Coach (Dabo) Swinney has picked everyone in this facility, and he's done a great job, because there's not one person in here that I can say one bad thing about. I’m not saying the other places don't have great people, but this place is different.”
Pendergrass recalled his first day at practice as a walk-on in 2022. Surrounded by talent, he quickly realized how big the gap was.
“My first day was eye-opening because I had a lot of getting better to do. All of these guys on the team are great athletes, so for a guy who’s like me who is undersized and not as strong as some of these guys, I had to work my butt off.”
Pendergrass is one of the few players on the roster who wears two numbers. On offense, he wears #65, a lineman’s number, making him ineligible to receive a forward pass under NCAA rules. On the punt shield, he wears #94, which allows him to be an eligible receiver on a fake.
“I wear #94 most of the time for the punt team, and that's so they can view me as someone who could run a route or something for fakes. If I ever play on the offensive line, they’ll put me back in #65. I've adapted to both of the numbers.
“My parents have both jerseys, so it's been fun. It’s definitely a weird circumstance, but it's been a cool story to tell people.”
Pendergrass has found his place on the punt shield. He earned a starting position there in 2024 and has played there since.
“When I go out there, I'll look at who they have on the field. Sometimes if they have their defensive linemen on the field, it'll be a safe punt, or they're not trying to have a fake thrown on them.
“Sometimes they'll be in a normal punt return. When I go out there, I'm reading it from left to right, and I'll make a call and give them a direction of which way they need to go. I'll give some sort of indicator to the snapper and snap it, and then from there everyone does their job.”
Throughout Pendergrass’ college career, his brother, Clayton, has been his inspiration for playing.
“He's my biggest fan. He calls me every day after practice. He's always been there.”
His brother was a great athlete but never got the opportunity to play in college.
“That’s kind of my ‘why,’ and why I do it is for him, because he cares about me so much.”
Before Clemson, Pendergrass played as a linebacker at T.L. Hanna, the same school that produced Ben Boulware, a former Clemson linebacker who helped the Tigers bring home the 2016 national championship. Boulware is currently the linebackers coach at Clemson.
“Watching Ben was who I always wanted to be like. It's cool that he's our coach now.”
In May, Pendergrass earned a degree in construction science & management. He also made the ACC Academic Honor Roll while balancing the full responsibilities of being a football player. He attributes much of his success to the Nieri Family Student-Athlete Enrichment Center.
“The program we have at Nieri, with all the tutoring and all the help that we get over there, I don't know how I would have done it without them. We have access to tutors and all kinds of mentors who help us plan our weeks. Without those people, I don't think this would have been possible.”
After school, Pendergrass aims to work as a project manager in commercial construction.
During the last season of his career, Pendergrass reflected on the lessons that Clemson football has taught him. When asked what the message was that he wanted to leave behind, he explained something he learned from Swinney.
“One thing Coach Swinney says that's the truest thing I've ever heard is, ‘The days are long, but the years are short.’ That's one thing I want people to know.
“Especially the freshmen who come in here, it goes by so quick. Some days I feel like I just walked in here, and some days it does feel like I've been here for five years. My message is, ‘Don't take any of these days for granted.’”
In the final season of his college football career, Pendergrass will not let a single moment slip by.