John Rittman: Clemson softball coach and Notre Dame football parent |
It’s not easy being the head coach of a major sport at a university during a pandemic, and it’s not easy being the parent of a student-athlete during the said pandemic. Clemson softball coach
John Rittman knows what it’s like to be both.
Clemson’s first softball season was truncated by COVID-19, and Rittman hopes that the 2021 season will take place despite the pandemic being still in play. The 2020 football season was also in doubt but played out to its end, and that included Rittman’s son Jake, who is a punter for the Notre Dame football team. Rittman said he was a little surprised when Jake decided to play football. "My wife played softball and I played baseball and I've coached softball for the last 34 years,” Rittman said. “We've kind of been a ball and bat family. Then, both our boys growing up, played all three sports and both decided to go the football route. My oldest son played football at UCLA, and graduated two years ago, and then Jake, who we held out hope would play baseball. He was a really talented high school baseball player, but he decided to go the football route as well.” Rittman said he and his wife have enjoyed the life of a football parent. “Certainly as parents proud of both of them, Justin getting a UCLA degree, and now Jake, at Notre Dame. He's in the Mendoza School of Business with an emphasis on business analytics, and he's got a 3.5 GPA,” Rittman said. “We're really proud of what they're doing in the classroom and school, but then, certainly, the football side of it has been so enjoyable and being able to go to UCLA games, and now going to Notre Dame games, it's a lot of fun, and then this year hits. ‘How are we going to do it?’ and ‘How are we going to do football?’ and I can tell you, I think the football coaches and medical staff have really done a great job in making sure that in that high-risk sport, that they were able to get the season and as parents, that was our biggest concern is the health of your kid, the players and coaches, and staff.” Rittman then said that once everyone understood what it would take have a season, watching his son play the game he loves was enjoyable. “When you're dealing with these things, sometimes they don't understand the complexities and the severities of what this pandemic is really all about, but I think as they started playing games, it became, really, the players, and everybody became really more aware of how serious this is and what they need to do to make sure everybody stays safe,” he said. “It was definitely a different year for parents, but we did get to enjoy a lot of football this year and got to enjoy spending time with Jake as much as we could with all the guidelines and restrictions with interaction, but exciting year, really, and very blessed that we were able to do that.” Rittman was able to see the Irish play four times in person. “We got to see the first game of the year against Duke, when Notre Dame played Duke, and then obviously we got to see both the Clemson games, the game at Notre Dame and then the ACC Championship Game and then we got to go to the Cotton Bowl,” Rittman said. “So it was really a great year. Jake has really enjoyed his experience at Notre Dame and we're thankful for that.” I asked Rittman what it was like knowing that he is employed by Clemson University yet has a son playing for the opposition. “It was very awkward and strange, and luckily at Notre Dame and at the ACC Championship Game, the weather was a little bit cool,” he said. “I could put my Clemson shirt on underneath and then put the Notre Dame sweatshirt on top, so I was still representing both, but certainly awkward during the game and you're not rooting against anybody. You're kind of rooting for both, but definitely different for Lorie and I to sit through both of those games.”
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