Carter Understands why Clemson-South Carolina Dislike Each Other

Georgia native had a rude welcoming to the rivalry

Kevin Vandervort / All Clemson

CLEMSON, S.C. — Coming from Georgia, Barrett Carter heard about the rivalry between Clemson and South Carolina, but he did not realize how intense it was until he played in it.

Carter’s first taste of the rivalry was not a pleasant one, as he and his teammates were greeted rudely by Gamecock fans as they entered the playing field at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia prior to last year’s game.

“When you get there and you are going out for warmups, and people are throwing stuff at you, you are like, ‘Oh shoot! This is like big,’” the Clemson linebacker said.

The Tigers (10-1) and Gamecocks (7-4) are scheduled to meet for the 119th time this Saturday when No. 9 Clemson plays host to USC for a noon kick at Memorial Stadium.

“You see a bunch of stuff in the facility, like whole walls dedicated to the rivalry," Carter said. "So, I did not think it was like that intense, really. After last year, that really opened my eyes. Like this is the real deal. It is on. It is serious. I had no clue.”

The Clemson-Carolina rivalry began in 1896 and is one of the oldest rivalries in college football. The dislike between the two schools goes back to before Clemson even opened its doors.

Clemson was established as a land-grant college in 1889 while taking the agriculture department from the University of South Carolina. By the time Clemson opened its doors in 1893, South Carolina was forced to drop its university status and was relegated back to just college status.

The folks in Columbia did not take too kindly to losing their status, and thus the rivalry was born.

As for the players, they try not to get caught up too much in what is happening off the field while they are playing, but they know how much it means to the fans on either side.

“It is our rival. We are not going to make it like it is any other game. It is a championship game,” Carter said. “So, we are not going into it like it is a normal game. Obviously, they are coming off a big win, so we are trying to just go in and handle business and just take care of them.”

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