Clemson game days are arguably one of the most imperative aspects of a Clemson student’s college career. Here are some tips to make sure your game day experience is the best it can be.
Prep before Saturday
All home football games are held at Memorial Stadium, also known as Death Valley, located on Clemson’s campus. Football season occurs from late August through November and can continue through December if the Tigers make the playoffs.
Game day kickoff times are usually noon, mid-afternoon around 3 p.m., or evening around 8 p.m., depending on the game. Check the Clemson football Instagram @clemsonfb for official time updates.
Many game-day attendees acquire game-day attire weeks, sometimes even months, before football season officially begins. During football season, some games have outfit themes such as “Purple Out” for military appreciation.
Final preparations on the Friday before a game day might include picking up your student ticket, setting out designated game-day outfits, hydrating, carb-loading, sleeping and finishing up homework for the weekend.
Ticket Info
Clemson students can request season tickets for a price or enter the single-game ticket lottery before the season begins to win up to four free tickets. Otherwise, they and other non-students can buy tickets on Ticketmaster, StubHub or another ticket outlet.
Clemson student-athletes are given free tickets, which they can pick up at the ticket office by Memorial Stadium right before kickoff. Student-athletes have a designated section in the stadium to watch the game.
Student tickets are wristbands that are scanned upon entering the stadium, while tickets bought online are loaded onto fans’ mobile phones to easily access and scan at the stadium entrance.
Your seat location depends on whether you bought a ticket online or received a student ticket. The lottery provides tickets on the Hill, lower deck and upper deck student sections, while online purchased tickets provide exact seat numbers.
Pre-game traditions
Tailgates, a game day tradition, begin several hours before kickoff and allow fans to eat, drink and spend time together before the game begins. Tailgates typically end about one hour before kickoff to give fans time to pack up, regroup and prepare for the several-hour game ahead.
Another pre-game tradition is the Tiger Walk. The “display of mutual admiration,” according to the Clemson Tigers website, was head coach Dabo Swinney’s idea to foster support for the football team as they enter the stadium for home games. The 200-yard walk starts about 2 hours before kickoff in the P-3 parking lot, which is west of Memorial Stadium.
The Clemson football players, Swinney and assistant coaches are known for entering the stadium by touching the famous Howard’s Rock and sprinting down the Hill to the field, which is known as “the most exciting 25 seconds in college football,” according to the Clemson Tigers website.
Following their entrance are the national anthem, alma mater, coin toss and kickoff.
During the game
The environment of a gameday consists of performances by Tiger Band, Rally Cats and the cheer team; fans waving Tiger rags chanting C-L-E-M-S-O-N; exciting plays by the football team and much more. Fans can enjoy a variety of traditional sports game foods, such as hotdogs, hamburgers, chips and more, in addition to non-alcoholic beverages.
Before fans know it, three 15-minute quarters have passed, and the famous fourth-quarter video plays. Whether the Tigers are winning or losing, the video is known for hyping up fans.
Following the game’s final score, fans are likely to rush the field, meet lingering football players and stand arm-in-arm to sing the Clemson alma mater.
