Getting your questions ready
Getting your questions ready
Beat the crowd
10 questions No timer
This Clemson trivia quiz has 50 free questions with answers and covers the university, the town and, above all, the Tigers. The campus questions go back to John C. Calhoun's Fort Hill plantation, the will that founded an agricultural college, the fire that destroyed the main building in 1894, the years as an all-male military school, Harvey Gantt's admission in 1963 and the traditions that followed: the Tiger Paw, Tigerama, the First Friday Parade and Tiger Rag. The football half runs from Walter Riggs bringing the game from Auburn and John Heisman's first unbeaten season, through Frank Howard's 30 years, the rock that started as a doorstop, the coining of 'Death Valley', Danny Ford's 1981 champions, and Dabo Swinney's title teams of 2016 and 2018 with Deshaun Watson, Hunter Renfrow and Trevor Lawrence. There are questions on the South Carolina rivalry, the men's soccer titles and the town that used to be called Calhoun. Every answer has been checked against the Wikipedia pages for the university, the football program, the stadium and the people involved, and each explanation adds one detail worth remembering.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01In what year was Clemson founded as an agricultural college?
1889
The bill creating the college passed the state legislature by a single vote, and classes began in 1893 with 446 students.
Q 02The campus sits on Fort Hill, the former plantation of which US vice president?
John C. Calhoun
His daughter Anna married the founder in 1838, and the plantation passed to the couple; the Fort Hill house still stands on campus.
Q 03Before founding the college, Thomas Green Clemson served as US chargé d'affaires to which country?
Belgium
He held the post from 1844 to 1852 and later served as US Superintendent of Agriculture; his will asked that the school be modelled on Mississippi State.
Q 04Clemson's will asked that the new school be modelled on which existing institution?
Mississippi State
Both were land-grant agricultural and mechanical schools; the federal Morrill Act funds were moved to Clemson from South Carolina College.
Q 05Which future governor lobbied for the college and has its main building named for him?
Benjamin Tillman
The building burned down in May 1894, months after opening, and was rebuilt the same year; it later came to house the College of Education.
Q 06Many of Clemson's original buildings were constructed by which workforce?
Convict labourers
Some were as young as 12 and almost all were Black; more than 500 of their names are recorded, and South Carolina used more convict labour on its universities than any other state.
Q 07Until 1955, Clemson was what kind of institution?
An all-white male military school
Student walkouts against 'prison camp' discipline in 1902, 1920 and 1924 shaped the school long before it went civilian and admitted women.
Q 08Who became Clemson's first African-American student in 1963 after a federal court ordered his admission?
Harvey Gantt
The process was notably peaceful compared with Ole Miss; he later said his large build and the president's stern warnings kept confrontations away.
Q 09Gantt went on to be elected mayor of which city?
Charlotte
An architect by training, he was the city's first Black mayor and its centre for African-American arts and culture bears his name.
Q 10In which year was Clemson College renamed Clemson University?
1964
The change recognised its expanded academic offerings; the college had opened in July 1893 with 446 students.
Q 11Clemson was the first Southern school to train specialists in which industry?
Textiles
President Henry Hartzog created the textile department in 1898, later expanding into foundry work and mechanics.
Q 12The campus borders which body of water, formed by a dam completed in 1962?
Lake Hartwell
The 1,400-acre campus sits in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, in unincorporated Pickens County outside the city limits.
Q 13The town of Clemson was renamed in 1943 to reflect the university. What had it been called?
Calhoun
In 2015 the Princeton Review ranked it number one in the country for 'town-and-gown' relations.
Q 21Which Memorial Stadium nickname did Presbyterian coach Lonnie McMillan coin in 1948?
Death Valley
The name also nods to the university cemetery on a hill that once overlooked the field, before the upper decks went up.
Q 22The 'Running Down the Hill' entrance began because the football locker rooms were in which building?
Fike Field House
Players ran all the way from there into the stadium to intimidate opponents; the tradition lapsed for two and a half seasons after 1970 when a new coach switched end zones.
Q 23In what year did Memorial Stadium open?
1942
Outgoing coach Jess Neely had advised putting 'about 10,000 seats behind the YMCA'; the stadium now holds more than 80,000.
Q 14Clemson's teams took the name Tigers in 1896 in imitation of which then-dominant football program?
Princeton
A member of the first football team named Thompson chose it; the mascot's paw became the official logo in 1970.
Q 15Which 'father of Clemson football' brought the sport from Auburn and later became Clemson's president?
Walter Riggs
The soccer teams still play on Riggs Field, dedicated in 1915 and the football team's home until Memorial Stadium opened.
Q 16Which coach, namesake of college football's most famous trophy, led Clemson's first undefeated season in 1900?
John Heisman
He went 19–3–2 at Clemson before moving on to Georgia Tech, Penn and Rice among others.
Q 17Which coach led the Tigers from 1940 to 1969 and has Memorial Stadium's playing field named after him?
Frank Howard
He won two Southern Conference and six ACC titles, and his predecessor had begged him never to build a big stadium.
Q 18Alumnus Samuel Jones picked up Howard's Rock in which state?
California
The coach used the quartzite lump as a doorstop for years, then told a booster to 'throw it over the fence'; the booster put it on a pedestal instead.
Q 19Howard's Rock debuted in September 1966 as Clemson came from 18 down to beat which team?
Virginia
The rubbing tradition began the following season, with the coach warning anyone not giving 110 percent to 'keep your filthy hands off of it'.
Q 20What happened to Howard's Rock in June 2013?
Vandals broke off a large chunk
Three people were eventually arrested; the damage was assessed at more than $10,000.
Q 24Which coach led Clemson to its first national championship in 1981?
Danny Ford
He was only 33 at the time; his era later drew NCAA sanctions for recruiting violations.
Q 25Clemson clinched the 1981 national title by beating which team in the Orange Bowl?
Nebraska
The 22–15 win capped a 12–0 season and made the Tigers consensus champions with all four major selectors.
Q 26Who took over as head coach seven games into the 2008 season after Tommy Bowden resigned?
Dabo Swinney
He is now the winningest coach in both Clemson and ACC history.
Q 27The head coach's nickname 'Dabo' comes from his brother Tripp trying to say what?
'That boy'
His given name is William Christopher; he was raised in Pelham, Alabama and walked on as a receiver for the Crimson Tide in 1989.
Q 28Clemson won the national title in both 2016 and 2018 by beating which team?
Alabama
The 2016 game was college football's first national championship rematch; the 2018 game was a 44–16 rout.
Q 29Who threw the winning touchdown with one second left in the 2016 national title game?
Deshaun Watson
He was picked 12th overall by the Houston Texans in the 2017 draft.
Q 30Which walk-on receiver caught the winning touchdown in the 2016 title game?
Hunter Renfrow
The final score was 35–31, Clemson's first national title since 1981.