Note: The following appears in the Troy football gameday program.
The journey to earning a spot onto a college football team is not easy. Countless days and nights of sweat, tears and work goes into achieving the dream of playing football on the big stage. Even after making it big, the work gets even harder.
Tristan Leigh’s journey to Clemson reached a climax when he committed to the Tigers on Jan. 2, 2021. With so many options on the table, Clemson felt right as a school that would help him succeed, not only as a football player, but also as a man.
“I looked at my final schools and I knew I wanted to play at a big school and win a national championship,” said Leigh. “But honestly, I believed I could hit all of my football goals while also getting more of a holistic development by going to Clemson.”
After an outstanding tenure in high school as an offensive tackle at James W. Robinson Secondary School in Virginia, Leigh was nationally ranked as a five-star recruit and top player at his position. It did not take long for former Clemson Defensive Coordinator Brent Venables to recruit him and set Leigh’s career trajectory to the Palmetto State, fulfilling a dream he always had along the way.
“My dad played football at Virginia, so growing up, all I heard was stories about him,” stated Leigh. “All I ever wanted to do was play football, and I was trying to be like him.”
Stan Leigh was a running back for the Cavaliers from 1990-94, and his experience and love for football motivated his son to pursue football as well. With the support of both his father and mother, Laura, he began playing flag football when he was young and eventually started playing tackle football in seventh grade, once his mother allowed him to.
Leigh started his time with the Tigers in the fall of 2021, when he redshirted while playing on the scout team. While there, his main task was to get former Clemson defensive end Myles Murphy ready for games, which was not an easy task. Through his training and experience in the trenches of working towards improving and living up to the standards of a five-star recruit, he developed and learned to be strong and to persevere.
“I developed that mental toughness every day. It doesn’t matter how I’m feeling, because I have a job to do. As I have moved up in the ranks and gotten older, my appreciation and perspective didn’t change from that guy who was on the scout team. I gained a perspective of how we need every single person on this team to be 100-percent committed to their job and role, whatever it is.”
While not the most ideal starting role for a highly touted player joining a competitive program, Leigh learned what it took to be a leader and difference maker in the locker room and among his teammates. The work and expectations, however, began to pile high, and it took the words and encouragement from a veteran leader to push him further.
That leader was Andrew Booth Jr.
“Andrew and I didn’t really talk at the time. He was a junior and I was a freshman. I remember him as one of the best players on the team. One day when everything was piled on me, I said, ‘This is tough…I’m not the player I want to be.’ I was getting really hard on myself, especially for the expectations of coming in as a five-star recruit.
“One day, I was running myself after practice and I sat down and was crying. He grabbed me and told me, ‘You have to keep going. We don’t know when or why, but there is going to come a time when this team is going to need you, and you have to keep going.’ He made me feel special.”
That time finally came in the 2023 season, when he won the starting job at left offensive tackle. Leigh proceeded to play 756 offensive snaps and start 11 games, helping the Tigers total 2,266 yards on the ground.
His best season came in 2024, when he was once again the starting left offensive tackle, playing the seventh-most snaps on the team and boosting Clemson to finish in the top 15 in the nation in total offense.
Leigh is in his third and final year as a starter, which could be his most impactful yet.
“I’ve taken it upon myself in the last year to be the best leader that I possibly can be and set the example. I’m a vocal guy and I’m passionate. I yell and jump around, and I bring energy…that’s me being myself. I get that love and energy from them because I want to be the best version of myself for my teammates and give them everything I have.”
Leigh has had his fair share of trials and obstacles, but he believes he is the most prepared he has ever been, and the rest of his teammates are right alongside him and eager for victory.
“It’s a special group of guys. We love each other and we’re willing to sacrifice and do things for us to win. We’ve been through it all, and now, it’s our turn.”
The Tigers have big standards for the 2025 season, and Leigh’s grit and determination shines through.
