Clemson's West Coast Journey
Clemson Faces Unique Logistical Challenges Ahead Of Historic West Coast Game At Cal
Anonymous
Clemson is preparing for a Friday night road game at Cal under unusual logistical pressure, including a short week, a three-time-zone adjustment and a roughly 2,500-mile journey from South Carolina to California. The team’s equipment truck departed Monday night for an approximately 40-hour drive, while the rest of the team is scheduled to fly out Wednesday after practicing in Clemson. The preparation window was further compressed by a lengthy lightning delay in the previous week’s win over North Carolina, leaving the equipment staff about 48 hours to process and ready the team’s gear. Clemson plans to practice in California during the game’s scheduled kickoff window to help players adapt to the late local start, and the Tigers will hold additional practices and meetings at Diablo Valley College. Coach Dabo Swinney said the travel plan had been developed for about a year and praised the operations and equipment staffs for managing the demanding trip.
Key Points
1
Quarterback Tait Reynolds was set to make his first career road start after throwing for 215 yards and a touchdown in his first start, Clemson’s win over North Carolina.
2
The Cal game marks only the second meeting between Clemson and the Golden Bears; Clemson won the first matchup, 37-13, in the 1992 Citrus Bowl.
3
This will be Clemson’s fourth game on the West Coast and its first regular-season West Coast game since 1966; the Tigers’ most recent trip west was their 2019 national championship win over Alabama.
4
Swinney praised Cal quarterback Jaron Keawe-Sagapolutele, calling him a “‘dude’” and saying, “If you want to see what an NFL quarterback looks like, watch this guy’s tape.”
5
Clemson’s equipment operation is led by director Nick Yarid and Noah Harvin, with graduate assistants and student managers handling the work; the staff normally has a full week to process and clean gear after a game but had only 48 hours for the Cal trip.
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