It’s a Saturday morning in the fall, and you wake up to the nice autumn leaves amidst a bright, sunny blue sky. You dress for the day and head down from your dorm to campus.
All of a sudden, you see tents left and right with music blaring and drinks and food open to fans wearing orange and purple. Campus is practically shut down, and instead, it has been overrun by alumni and excited students who forget about their schoolwork for a day.
It’s game day in Tigertown — the entire week has been leading up to it. Are you prepared to participate? These are the basics of what to know before you march over to Death Valley and enter the stadium.
First off, the colorful tailgates take over every parking lot and open space on campus. These tailgates have been set up through different parking pass systems through Clemson’s athletic donation foundation IPTAY, bought by alumni or families of students alike.
These typically feature speakers or TVs set up to prepare for the game, tables of food and beverages lined up and dozens of lawn chairs for the patrons taking part in the pregame. If anything tries to sell the family aspect of Clemson, especially on game days, it all begins with the tailgating environment.
If you’re amped to watch the Tigers fight in Death Valley, there are many ways to access tickets. The first would be to buy student season tickets, which are primarily offered in late April to continuing Clemson students through a lottery. Other processes include the endless supply of alumni selling tickets on sites like TigerNet or through reselling websites like Ticketmaster.
The most popular way to get a ticket is through the single-game ticket lottery, open in August. Students rank all Clemson home games, with the first-ranked game being the one they want to attend most and the last-ranked game the one they want to attend least.
Students can win a maximum of four tickets, with lottery priority determined by class standing and IPTAY membership. Students can be chosen for the hill, lower bowl or top deck sections.
Game day attire is not the most important aspect of the day, but it definitely is the most easily observable factor. While you can always wear Clemson gear or a classic orange jersey, guys usually opt for a polo and khakis, and girls are often seen in summer dresses or rompers.
Of course, any type of clothing is permitted into Memorial Stadium. Something to note is that Death Valley does not allow backpacks or mesh bags in the stands, with a strict clear bag policy that only permits transparent totes, small clutch bags or small purses. This ensures the safety of Clemson fans and reduces game day stress on stadium security.
There are various game day traditions beyond tailgating. The Tiger Walk takes place in the Rogers Family Lot, or IPTAY Lot 5, directly behind the stadium. The center of the lot features Clemson players and coaches as they walk through during their famous 200-yard route to the stadium.
Around 90 minutes before kickoff, the Tiger Band performs a mini concert to play iconic Clemson songs in an effort to pep up the Tiger faithful before the band and fans march on down to Memorial Stadium.
The most famous of all traditions is the “most exciting 25 seconds in college football,” featuring the Tigers rubbing Howard’s Rock atop the hill to assert they will give 110% effort in the game they are about to play, before rushing down the hill one after another.
This burst of excitement is preceded by the Clemson buses’ two right turns, where the players leave the stadium after warmups and enter the buses out of the west side of the stadium and return to the gate where Howard’s Rock sits.
With a quick rundown of campus appearance, how to get tickets and traditions, you now know what it takes to be a part of one of the best game day environments in all of college football this upcoming fall!
