An interesting clause popped up in the media this week inside the contract of the college football rivalry game between Clemson and South Carolina.
According to the document, the 2027 meeting at Willians-Brice Stadium in Columbia could be played on either Nov. 26 or Nov. 27. The former is on a Friday.
This idea is sure to ruffle some feathers with the fan bases and teams.
“I’ve always voted for it on Saturday for a lot of reasons,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said on Tuesday. “If they want to move it, it’s up to them.”
This has traditionally been a rivalry saved for the first Saturday after Thanksgiving since 1991. Before 1960, the game was played on “Big Thursday,” a tradition that began in 1896.
Nobody likes change, but Tiger and Gamecock faithful should embrace a move to Black Friday. There are some advantages. It's not all bad.
Buck tradition
College football isn’t what it used to be. We all know it, and as much as it hurts to say, it’s never going to go back to what it was, so rip off the bandaid and abandon everything we know for the sake of other advantages.
Let’s rip the Saturday rivalry apart and do something different, even for the sake of just doing something different.
Maybe this begins a new tradition that your children will embrace…until somebody comes along and takes that one away. Isn’t that just what the sport is now? Live with it and adjust.
Also, nobody’s missing worthy Black Friday sales. Most of that is done online. You’re gonna shop from the couch anyway. Imagine finding a steal at the tailgate site and sharing it with your parking-lot neighbors? That would be a new tradition.
Better exposure
Play this game on a different day and you’ll get the exposure that this rivalry desperately needs. Google “best college football rivalries” and see what shows up. You know which one isn’t on there? Clemson-Carolina.
Why? Because it’s been overlooked nationally, replaced by games in the ever-shifting conference landscape that matter more. Moving to Friday isolates this rivalry. Clemson and South Carolina will get a time slot without anything else taking away attention.
Right now, it’ll get put on during the Michigan-Ohio State noon game, and very few people outside the Palmetto State will even know it’s played. Make it a priority nationally, and the allure of this rivalry grows. People will learn the history of these two schools, both good and bad, of this series, and that matters.
Talk about growing the game, it’s time to grow this rivalry.
Get it over with
How does rolling up to the tailgate with just a day-old leftovers of turkey and dressing sound compared to two-day-old Thanksgiving food? A lot better, right?
How about waking up the next Saturday morning knowing you’ve already beaten your rival and can just sit back and enjoy a stress-free day of other people’s triumph and agony?
There’s something to be said for getting it over with and moving on with your life. It really frees up the rest of the weekend. And by the time you go back to work on Monday, a loss stings less, and your co-workers can’t get to you as much.