C.J. Spiller Knew Early On That Clemson Was Home
C.J. Spiller could have played at any school he wanted to.
A member of the 2006 recruiting class, Spiller was a 5-star prospect out of Lake Butler, Florida, and a Top-25 talent overall. He was the kind of player that very rarely would even consider coming to Clemson back in those days.
Although, that wasn't going to deter a little-known wide receivers coach on Tommy Bowden's staff by the name of Dabo Swinney from making every effort to land the prized recruit.
Being from Florida, many considered the Gators the favorites to land the elite-level talent as Urban Meyer had turned the program into a bonafide winner. Spiller had grown up watching Florida and Florida State battle for supremacy in the state but still wanted to keep his options open and take as many visits as he could.
"All the visits was very unique," Spiller said at Clemson's Media Day. "Obviously, you know, growing up in the state of Florida you knowed about Florida and the Seminoles battles, but this was a great opportunity for me to step outside the state."
One of the highlights of the recruiting process for Spiller was going out to Los Angeles and watching former Heisman winner Reggie Bush in action.
"Went out to Southern Cal and was able to watch Reggie play against Fresno," Spiller said. "That was a very unique experience. It lived up... you know, that was my first time going to going to California. You hear stories about Hollywood and it lived up to the Hollywood."
When Spiller visited Clemson, though, there was a different vibe. So much so he called his mother to tell her how much he liked it, the only time he called her while on a recruiting trip.
"Then you come here to Clemson, you know, it's more of a family atmosphere," Spiller said. "Close community, close-knitted. And it reminded me so much of Lake Butler. This was honestly the only visit where I called my mom on the visit. Called her, I told her this is a place where I can come and spend for three or four years."
There was just something different about the small college town in the upstate of South Carolina compared to all the schools he had visited. Not even the lure of playing for some of the most well-known coaches in the country could keep Spiller away from Clemson, a place that reminded him of home.
"And that was coming off, you know, a Florida visit whenever Meyer just got there," Spiller said. "That's coming off going to Tallahassee with the legendary coach Bobby Bowden, having already been out there to Pete Carroll. So come here and be able to call back home and tell my mom said this is a place that I can come in and play for three or four years, that says something about this place."
Despite the fact that Clemson wasn't considered one of the nation's premier programs at the time, Spiller was drawn to the lifestyle the school offered him. Not that of big city life, but one that reminded him of where he came from, and the place he would eventually call home.
His four years at the school catapulted him to being a first round pick by the Buffalo Bills in 2010 and after an eight year career in the NFL, Spiller would return to Clemson. Entering his first season as the teams running back's coach, the campus looks drastically different today compared to when he was piling up accolades as a Tiger. However, the soul of the town remains unchanged, and that's what Spiller says makes it so unique.
"I think that's why it's so special," Spiller said. "Because it's so different than every other place. You can come here and just be yourself. People here gonna treat you like family. And that's what you want."
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