Page 18 - March 2017 Rev E_Neat

ISSUE NUMBER 165 MARCH 2017
THE TOWN CRIER

More Than Just a Title Win
By Claire Harvin

It was the beginning of January 1982 when eight college seniors piled on to a Winnebago van to make the 11-hour
drive down to Miami, Florida. Despite luggage being strapped to the roof of the van, seedy sleeping arrangements and
less than ideal weather conditions, nothing seemed to stop these - still to this day close friends from getting to Florida
to cheer on the Clemson Tigers. That trip, Lee Harvin and his future wife, Lynn, alongside six of their close friends,
witnessed as Perry Tuttle caught Clemson’s final touchdown of the game and defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers to
take the 1981 National Championship title. Little did they know that one day they would be back in Florida with their
children, this time meeting Perry Tuttle and witnessing the Tigers bring home another National Championship title.

Flash forward 34 years and my parents, Lee and Lynn, are loading up two cars of their own with five family members
in tow, headed down to Tampa, Florida to watch the Clemson Tigers compete to win another National Championship
title, this time against the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Whether it was my grandfather complaining about the basketball team, my dad and brother discussing the next foot-
ball recruits or all five of us making the trek to TigerTown on Saturday mornings, there hasn’t been a time in my life I
can remember that did not involve the Clemson Tigers. Clemson has quite literally consumed my life, despite the fact
I grew up in South Carolina Gamecocks territory.

My entire family bleeds orange, and when it finally came time for my college decision, I chose home and never
looked back. It still takes me aback when I reflect on being a student here after 18 years of cheering the tigers on, and
man, I could not have asked for a better time to be a Clemson tiger.

As a freshman, I saw Clemson finish with 14-0 record and got to travel with my family to Phoenix, Arizona to cheer
Clemson on in a National Championship game against Alabama. This past season, I was lucky enough as a student to
see Clemson finish 13-1 and win a National Championship title against the legendary Alabama football team. How
many college students get to witness that?

The game itself was nothing short of an emotional rollercoaster. After a day of tailgating in what felt like Death Val-
ley due to the amount of Clemson people everywhere, the clock finally struck 7 PM, and I made my way towards the
stadium as the butterflies in my stomach grew. By kickoff, I was nothing short of a nervous wreck. I was feeling con-
fident even through Derrick Henry’s 50-yard run touchdown in the first quarter. However, by the time half-time came,
and the score was tied 14-14, I had never felt such zeal towards a football game in my life.

The second half consisted of screaming, tears rolling down and playing scenarios of both winning and losing in my
head; I wanted nothing more than to return to the campus I love so dearly the next day with a Championship title.
Henry’s touchdown with 1:07 left in the game was one of the most devastating feelings ever, one that I still feel writ-
ing this down. But that last minute and seven seconds of the game is exactly what defines Clemson. Right before my
eyes, much to my disbelief, I watched a team with sheer determination and only six plays push through to take the title
they had been working towards. I held my breath as Deshaun Watson threw that final pass to Jordan Leggett to score
with only twelve seconds left, and I cried as I watched the team and school I have been cheering for my whole life
finally reap the benefits of their hard work.

Looking back on the game, I could not imagine a more fitting scenario for the Clemson Tigers. Even in Tampa, Flor-
ida, Clemson came together as the community of support, sportsmanship and determination that we are to cheer on a
team we believe in. Despite challenging circumstances, Clemson proved destiny can truly change in a minute, or in
our case, one minute and seven seconds of chance.

The only word that comes to mind when I think about my time here thus far is surreal. It is surreal that I go to one of
the happiest schools in the nation, surreal that I get to experience a school I have been cheering for my whole life for
myself, surreal that I have seen some of the best football games in Clemson history during my time here and surreal
that I got to watch my team and school win a National Championship alongside my parents who experienced the same
34 years before me. It is with sheer pride that I write this and pride that I think about the school and community I be-
long to.
Continued on the next page.

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