The making of a Clemson baseball fan in Tennessee

May 31, 2015, 3:07 PM

Over a decade ago I was finished with college athletics. The state school that I had supported was signing one thug after another, and their off field antics embarrassed me to the point that I quit wearing their apparel and I quit watching their games. I continued to support high school athletics and especially enjoyed games that involved youth from the church that I was a part of. Matthew Crownover was one of those young men. Matthew could be found before and after class visiting with a couple of teen foster young men who had experienced hellacious abuse at the hands of their biological parents. Those older teens read on a second grade level and stayed in trouble at school and at home. Matthew treated them with tremendous kindness and respect. Matthew spent time talking with all of the elderly men in the congregation about their favorite college and pro teams. Matthew was an excellent Bible student and public speaker. I met almost all of Matthew's extended family - as his aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents would pack out our church building on the couple of Sunday nights a year that Matthew would speak.
When Matthew committed to Clemson 5 1/2 yrs ago, I started loosely following their baseball team. When he became part of the team, I began watching the games he pitched. In that 1st season, as I overheard player conversations and listened to interviews, I realized that Coach Leggett was intentionally recruiting young men of high moral character. It wasn't long before I was watching or listening to any Clemson baseball game that I could fit in my schedule - regardless of starting pitcher - because I found myself rooting for all of these exceptional young men. I suspect that I'll continue to watch these young men that I've become a fan of for long after Matthew leaves Clemson. I'm very proud of these student athletes and what they've accomplished through much adversity. It was so refreshing to find a program that valued academics and moral character at least as highly as athletic prowess. This will be my last post of the season as I only keep up with Clemson baseball. God bless you all.

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Ken, I'm surprised that I haven't met you. My name is Tim Cooke and I'm a mechanical engineer. I was a deacon at Brainerd for many years. A little before Brainerd merged with East Brainerd, my family moved to Clear Creek. I spend 1/2 of my Sunday's there and 1/2 of my Sunday's in Gruetli-Laager with my parents. You will find that Matthew's mom, dad and sister Kelby are just as exceptional as he is. I could share many stories, but have second guessed myself a bit for sharing the personal tidbits about Matthew that I shared to start the thread. When my older children are in town, we typically visit East Brainerd, because all of the people that they know attend there. I will look for you on our next visit

The making of a Clemson baseball fan in Tennessee

Great post!!!!!!

Re: The making of a Clemson baseball fan in Tennessee

Thank you for your contributions and your support during

Re: Thank you for your contributions and your support during

Re: The making of a Clemson baseball fan in Tennessee

Very nice post.

Re: Very nice post.

Sounds good

Thanks for supporting Tiger baseball

Very classy post! Clemson baseball has, by and large,

Winning the right way with high character players is best!***

Re: The making of a Clemson baseball fan in Tennessee

Re: The making of a Clemson baseball fan in Tennessee

Wonderful post about a great young man! I am...

Great post. If you like athletes and programs of high

Re: The making of a Clemson baseball fan in Tennessee

Thanks for your support & give Clemson football a try.***

GREAT & welcomed post "BaseBallFan"!

Thanks for the great post and adopting Clemson baseball.

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