CJ Spiller “was born to come to Clemson”

I remember the first big play of CJ Spiller's Clemson career. I'm sure many of you out there still do.

It was September 9, 2006 at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.

Clemson was playing Boston College and it was midway through the second quarter when Spiller took a swing pass from quarterback Will Proctor around his own 20, went up the other sideline, cut inside while missing the entire BC defense, and raced into the open field for an 82-yard TD.

It was the beginning of everything to come and something we all got used to.

Spiller was fun to watch, he's still the most exciting player I've ever covered.

“CJ is one of a kind,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said. “Above all, he is a remarkable human being. And even as a young player, he was incredibly wise beyond his years. He had a great vision for what he wanted to do.”

What Spiller did was change Clemson.

Before Spiller, the Tigers simply couldn't sign this five-star player like they did during the Danny Ford years.

From 1977 to 1991, Clemson was a power in college football, much like the program is today. Players weren't rated as five-stars back then. Look at the lineage that came through the Clemson football program back in the day – Jerry Butler, Dwight Clark, Jim Stuckey, Bubba Brown, Jeff Davis, Cliff Austin, Kevin Mack, Perry Tuttle, etc. Perrys, Terrence Flagler, Kenny Flowers, Levon Kirkland, Ed McDaniel, Terry Allen, James Trapp, Check McGlockton and of course the guy who started it all, Steve Fuller.

Spiller was like Fuller. He changed the program.

Before Fuller, Clemson was stuck in mediocrity. With him and after his departure, the program reached heights never seen before.

Fuller came to Clemson in 1975. The Tigers returned to bowling in 1977 and won their first ACC championship in 11 years in 1978.

Three years later, the Tigers won their first national championship and enjoyed unprecedented success throughout the 1980s.

Unfortunately, things cooled off after Ford's departure in January 1990, leaving Clemson to wander in the desert for nearly 20 years.

However, that changed when Spiller came to Clemson.

“I think CJ was born to come to Clemson,” Swinney said.

And thank God that was the case.

Spiller broke countless records as a player and still holds ACC single-season and career records for all-purpose yards. He scored 2,680 points in 2009 and finished his career with 7,588, which was the second-highest total in FBS history at the time of his graduation.

In 2009, his senior season, Spiller finished sixth in Heisman Trophy voting after winning the ACC Player of the Year award and being a unanimous first-team All-American. He was the first college football player in Walter Camp All-America team history to play on the first or second team All-American at two positions in the same year.

He recorded 21 career touchdowns of at least 50 yards and an ACC record eight career kick returns for touchdowns, which was at one point an NCAA record.

To put it mildly, Spiller was special.

“It was my first five-star hotel here. He was my first first-rounder. He was my first Pro Bowler. He was my first College Football Hall of Famer and now my first Ring of Honor player,” Swinney said. “I’m really happy for him.”

Since Spiller, Clemson has attracted great players like Tajh Boyd, DeAndre Hopkins, Sammy Watkins, Mike Williams, DeShaun Watson, Christian Wilkins, Trevor Lawrence, Travis Etienne and Tee Higgins to play.

Spiller took Clemson to its first ACC Championship game in 2009 and even though the Tigers didn't win it, he was still voted the game's MVP. Two years later, Clemson won its first ACC championship in 20 years and five years later its first national championship.

How much does Spiller love Clemson?

After his NFL career ended in 2017, he returned to Clemson. He eventually joined Swinney's coaching staff in 2020 and now serves as the Tigers' running backs coach, guiding and guiding young men to become not only great football players, but great men.

“Our relationship is like that of father and son. I mean, I love him like a son,” Swinney said. “He's special in every way and it's great to see him become a great father… a great husband… He's just amazing. He is the epitome of the Clemson spirit. He’s a guy who left a lot behind to get to Clemson.”

When I think of Spiller, two pieces come to mind that show what kind of player he was. The first was in 2006, when he took another Proctor swing pass near the other sideline and did something I've never seen repeated: He cut outside to make a Georgia Tech player miss bring, and then back inside for another before hitting Brenner down the sideline for a long touchdown.

Spiller made watching Clemson football fun again, and as Swinney said, “CJ was born to come to Clemson.”