I hope most Clemson fans believe this because its IMPORTANT!

Sep 25, 2007, 5:04 PM

Discussion of this issue keeps coming up from time to time and while I have never seen any substantive evidence that serious consideration is "currently" underway, I hope everyone can understand and appreciate ...

Memorials are NOT for sale. Once someone has already paid the ultimate price, how do you go looking for a higher bid?

I have extremely strong, half century-long ties to Clemson and the football team. I eat, sleep and drink Clemson football and I always have.

It bothers me not at all that developers and wealthy families are able to buy a "gate" or a dressing room or even a previously un-named building on campus.

This said, I will never set foot in our stadium again if we ever bow to the pressure to sell naming rights when the facility is and always has been a memorial to those who died fighting for our country.

I was extremely happy when the decision was made to name the "playing surface" after Frank Howard. Coach Howard definitely deserved to be recognized in this way and it is a testament to the devotion and wisdom of the Clemson University family at the time that they found a way to do it without resorting to changing the name of the stadium itself.

I know we need to raise money if Clemson football is to move forward in the future and to compete with the top programs in the nation. But, we made a covenant over 60 years ago to honor a group of people who made a much bigger sacrifice than any deep pocketed individual or corporation and IMHO we simply cannot afford to go back on that obilgation.

Almost everyone who posts on Tigernet has a grandfather or a father or an uncle, etc. who fought in WWII. Many have family members who died in the process. This is a fairly universal Clemson issue that cannot ... and should not be taken lightly in our quest to compete in football.