Note: The following appears in the Boston College football gameday program. Saying that Will Spiers enjoys a multitude of family ties to Clemson would be an understatement. The Tiger graduate punter recalls spending many fall Saturdays at Clemson football games while growing up, as both of his parents and many other members of his family attended the university. His father, Bill, played football and baseball for the Tigers before going on to a 13-year MLB career. He was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame in 2007 and returned to the school through the Tiger Trust Program to serve as the senior offensive and special teams assistant for the football program. His grandfather, Bud, and uncle, Michael, also played baseball for the Tigers. The Cameron, S.C. native was raised donning the orange and purple with a burning desire to follow in his family’s footsteps. “I knew I wanted to come to Clemson ever since I was a little kid, because we always came to games as a family,” said Spie
Clemson, S.C. The Clemson University Athletic Department is accepting nominations for the Clemson Ring of Honor in all sports. The Ring of Honor is the highest honor bestowed by the Clemson Athletic Department. Nominations will be accepted through June 1, 2021 and may be sent via e-mail to Tim Bourret, Ring of Honor Committee Chairman at btimoth@clemson.edu, or through regular mail to PO Box 31, Clemson, SC, 29633.
Below is a summary of information about the nomination process and eligibility.
Ring of Honor Guidelines
Purpose: The charge of the Ring of Honor committee is to bestow the highest athletic award presented by the Clemson Athletic Department on deserving candidates. The committee will examine the careers of candidates in all Clemson sports. The committee meets once every two years.
Clemson Athletics Black History: Clyde Browne
Clyde Browne holds a distinction no other male athlete in ACC history holds. The men’s soccer player from 1972-75 was named the Most Valuable Player of the ACC all four years of his career, something no other male athlete has achieved in league history.
In addition to obviously making first-team All-ACC each of those years, Browne was an All-American in 1973 and 1974, his sophomore and junior seasons. A defender, Browne still scored 14 goals and had 20 assists in his career.
Clemson won the ACC Championship each of Browne’s seasons with the program. In 1975, his senior year, the Tigers reached the number-one national ranking for the first time and held that top ranking entering the NCAA Tournament.
Clemson Athletics Black History: Michael Green
Michael Green was the first Clemson men’s track athlete to win the NCAA Championship in the indoor 55 meters. And he did it twice, winning the event in 1992 and 1993. He also won the NCAA Championship in the outdoor 100 meters in the spring of 1993 with a time of 10.09.
Green won six All-America certificates in his career, two indoors and four outdoors. At the conference level, he was a nine-time ACC Champion, six individual events and three relays. He was the Most Valuable Performer of the ACC meet indoors and outdoors in 1993.
He is one of the few athletes to win both the Frank Howard Award and the IPTAY Athlete of the Year over his career.
Oliver Purnell was the first African-American head coach of a men’s sport in Clemson history. He served as the leader of the men’s basketball program for seven years and took Clemson a record tying 25 wins in 2006-07 and the championship game of the NIT. He then guided Clemson to the NCAA Tournament each of his last three years, just the second Clemson coach to do that. In 2008, he coached Clemson to the championship game of the ACC Tournament, just the second appearance in the final game in school history. That season the Tigers finished 22nd in the final AP poll, then finished 24th according to AP the following season. Purnell is the only coach to lead Clemson to consecutive final top 25 national rankings. One of the most respected coaches in the nation during his career, he is still the only Clemson head coach to serve as president of a National Coaches Association.