Due to the safety concerns that COVID-19 raised, Clemson had to put a lot of traditions on the shelf for a while. And while students missed them all, there was one that we were begging to get back. The gathering at the paw, a time-honored tradition, has won “best comeback” this year.
There is something incredibly special about the end of a Clemson football game. United in a crowd of orange and purple, students rush from the hill, victorious, towards the center of Death Valley. With music playing, fireworks booming and everyone dancing and yelling, there is no better time to be a Tiger.
This upcoming season, there will be three classes who haven’t had a chance to experience this Clemson tradition and seniors won’t have experienced it since their freshman year. Watching the drumline show, singing the alma mater on the field, meeting some of our football players and taking pictures from the field of Death Valley are some of the defining moments of a Clemson Football game. There is nothing better than when we gather as Tigers, united on the paw.