Nick Eason hopes his most memorable season becomes "November to remember."

Nick Eason says this has been his most memorable season.

Grayson Mann - Staff Writer - Tuesday, October 22 2024

CLEMSON - Once November is on the calendar, plenty of memories are made within the growing season. For Nick Eason, his third year has been his most memorable yet.

Looking back at where Clemson was last year, the Tigers were in the midst of one of the more tumultuous seasons in recent memory. One year later, the Tigers are back in the top ten, with everything in front of them.

As Eason stepped to the podium, he carried the memories of his first two seasons back at Clemson and how opportunities slipped away.

He remembers his first year back, with the team rolling at 8-0, only to finish the year 3-3 and miss the playoffs entirely. He also has 2023 stuck in his mind, where playoff contention became a distant memory in late September.

As the team enters its second open date, Eason has one goal: remove complacency.

"I think we just can never become complacent; just continue to work and stay humble,” Eason said. “We're a really good football team, and when you're a really good football team, there'll be a lot of great things written about you, but you got to stay inside out, remain humble through this process, and we got to finish, and that's what it comes down to. It is all about how we finish this last stretch. Just continue to stay together, look in the mirror, and figure out how you can get better.”

The word finish has become synonymous with Clemson’s identity this year, looking to right the wrongs of the past few seasons.

It was in bright orange on Dabo Swinney’s shirts throughout fall camp and echoed through the grounds of the facility as the season slowly approached on the horizon. That message only continues to amplify as the Tigers do have all their goals in sight. Clemson hasn’t been back to the College Football Playoff since 2020, and has been searching for a way back since.

Despite the Georgia opener blowout, if Clemson can claim an ACC crown in early December, an automatic bid is in its destiny.

Eason knows that you will be remembered for what you achieved in November and he has plenty of memories, both positive and negative, associated with that line of success.

“Right now, we're just focused on finishing and focusing on the opportunity that we have as a team,” Eason said. "We’ve worked hard, and people just remember what you do in November, so we just got to finish strong. We were here a couple of years ago, and when we were 8-0 when we didn't finish the season and gave two games away. So our focus right now is just getting better this week and having an opportunity to coach guys up and correct some mistakes. There's always room for improvement, and it's continuing to keep our heads down, stay humble, and continue to work.”

As plenty of players have relayed in the open date, all they are right now is 6-1.

Despite keeping the theme of sharp focus, there is an added excitement within this team with the opportunity of redemption in their grasp. If the Tigers are to reclaim that recognition as a national power, memories can certainly be made from that.

Eason knows this has been his most memorable season yet, and now has the opportunity to close the regular season with a “November to remember.”