The Clemson Tigers are the athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for football). Clemson competes for and has won multiple NCAA Division I national championships in football, men's soccer, and men's golf. The Clemson Tigers field twenty-one athletic teams, nine men's and twelve women's, across thirteen sports.
Clemson was a founding member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), where it has competed since the 1953–54 season. Previously, they were a founding member of the Southern Conference from 1921 through 1953, and a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association from 1896 through 1921.
Traditions Mascot
Clemson's teams have been known as the Tigers since 1896, when a member of the first football team named Thompson chose the name based on the then-dominant Princeton Tigers football team.
Clemson's costumed mascot, The Tiger, first appeared in 1954, with his companion, "The Cub" debuting in 1993. At football games, The Tiger does pushups equal to the total score Clemson has in the game, a tradition that began in 1980.
Tiger Band
Tiger Band evolved from regimental bands from Clemson's days as a military school. Tiger Band took its current form in 1955 after the school became coeducational. A smaller pep band performs at basketball games.
Fight song Clemson's fight song is a rendition of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band's "Tiger Rag". In 1941, cadet band leader Robert Dean Ross bought the sheet music from an Atlanta music shop, and the band played the song after every touchdown beginning with the 1942 football season.
Tiger Paw logo The Tiger Paw logo was introduced at a press conference on July 21, 1970. It was created by John Antonio and developed by Helen Weaver of Henderson Advertising in Greenville, South Carolina, from a mold of a Bengal tiger sent to the agency by the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. The telltale hook at the bottom of the paw is due to a scar that the tiger had and the hook at the bottom is also a sign that this is the official licensed trademark for the university.
Athletic directors
Sports sponsored Clemson sponsors teams in eight men's and eleven women's NCAA sanctioned sports. The first intercollegiate match in Clemson history was a baseball game on April 24, 1896, against Furman. The school's first football team followed that fall. Five women's sports were introduced in 1975 after the passage of Title IX.
Women's diving was the most recent sport to be dropped, following the 2017–18 season, while three sports have been added in recent years: softball (2020), women's lacrosse (2023), and gymnastics (2024).
Men's sports Women's sports Baseball Softball Basketball Basketball Cross country Cross country Soccer Soccer Football Volleyball Golf Golf Tennis Tennis Track and field Track and field Gymnastics Lacrosse Rowing
Timeline Team national championships marked with red lines.
Baseball
, the Tiger baseball team has posted a combined 32 ACC regular season and tournament championships (the most in the conference), 43 NCAA Tournament appearances, 17 NCAA Regional Titles, four NCAA Super Regional titles, and 12 College World Series appearances. Much of the baseball program's success occurred under Bill Wilhelm during his 35 seasons as Clemson's head coach. Erik Bakich is the Tigers' current head coach, having replaced Monte Lee after the conclusion of the 2022 season.
Basketball
The Clemson men's basketball team has qualified for the NCAA Tournament 13 times, and reached the Sweet 16 four times and the Elite Eight once. They are currently coached by Brad Brownell since 2010.
The Clemson women's basketball team began in 1975, and saw its biggest success in the late 1980s and 1990s. The Tigers reached the NCAA Elite Eight in 1991, and the Sweet Sixteen three times (1989, 1990, 1999). Women's basketball won two ACC Tournament championships in 1996 and 1999, and the regular season title in 1981. The team is currently coached by Amanda Butler.
Football
Clemson has three national championships in football, the most recent coming in 2018 with a victory over Alabama 44–16 in the 2019 College Football Playoff National Championship. Clemson has appeared in the last six playoffs and won two national championships during those visits. The Tigers also possess the most Atlantic Coast Conference championships with 20, including winning the last six.
It has also won greater than 60% of its games, placing it in the top 25 on the all-time winning percentage list. Clemson also won two Southern Conference titles before joining the ACC. The 1981 squad, led by Head Coach Danny Ford, became the first athletic team in school history to win a national championship. Clemson defeated Nebraska 22–15 in the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, to win the 1981 NCAA Football National Championship. Stars of the game included Homer Jordan (QB) and Perry Tuttle (WR). Clemson finished the year 12–0 and ranked #1 in the Associated Press and Coaches polls.
Some of the most notable coaching names in Clemson football history are John Heisman (who also coached at Akron, Auburn, Georgia Tech, Penn, Washington & Jefferson, and Rice; the Heisman Trophy is named after him), Jess Neely, Frank Howard (whom the playing field at Death Valley is named after), and Danny Ford. After Tommy Bowden resigned midseason on October 13, 2008, Dabo Swinney took over as interim head coach.Mark Schlabach, Bowden ousted at Clemson; coach 'deserved' to be fired, QB says, ESPN.com, October 13, 2008, Accessed October 13, 2008. On December 1, 2008, Swinney was named head coach of the Clemson Tigers football team.Associated Press, Clemson promotes interim coach Swinney to permanent job with 5-year deal, ESPN.com, December 1, 2008, Accessed December 1, 2008.
Before each home game, the team ends pre-game warm ups and proceeds to the locker room. With five minutes to go before game time, three buses leave the street behind the West Endzone carrying the Clemson football players. The buses pull to a stop at the gate in front of The Hill, and the Tigers gather at the top, where each player proceeds to rub "Howard's Rock", which is an imported rock from Death Valley, California that was presented to Frank Howard in 1967. While Tiger Rag is played and a cannon sounds, the Tigers run down the hill onto the field in front of over 83,000 screaming fans. This tradition has been dubbed "The most exciting 25 seconds in college football" by sportscaster Brent Musburger.
Golf The Tiger men's golf team have a tradition of being among the best in the ACC and the nation, having won several ACC titles and regularly qualifying for the NCAA Tournament. In 2003, Clemson defeated Oklahoma State to win its first National Championship in golf and the 4th overall for the school. In addition to that victory, Clemson also won the ACC and NCAA East Regional titles that year, making the Tigers the first program in NCAA history to win its conference, regional, and national championship tournaments in the same year. Clemson has also won eight regional titles since the NCAA adopted the regional tournament format in 1989, with their most recent win coming in 2024. Two Tigers have won individual NCAA Championships: Charles Warren in 1997 and Turk Pettit in 2021. 2009 U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover also played golf at Clemson.
Gymnastics Clemson began sponsoring a women's gymnastics program in the 2024 season. Their gymnastics team made their competitive debut on January 12, 2024, winning their inaugural meet against William & Mary. The Tigers have appeared in the NCAA tournament in each of their first three seasons and captured the 2026 ACC Gymnastics Championship.
Lacrosse Clemson began sponsoring a women's lacrosse program in the 2023 season. The Tigers made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2025.
Rowing
In 2009, the Lady Tigers rowing team became the first team other than Virginia to win the ACC Championship since the ACC began sponsoring the women's rowing championship in 2000. That year, Kelly Murphy, Lydia Hassell, Callen Erdeky, Allison Colberg, and Meredith Razzolini, won the NCAA title in Fours.
Soccer
The men's soccer team was Clemson's second sports program to win a national championship, winning the NCAA Tournament in 1984, 1987, 2021, and 2023.1984 National Championship (Soccer) 1987 National Championship (Soccer) In their 36 appearances in the NCAA tournament, the men's soccer team garnered runner-up finishes in 1979 and 2015, and has appeared in the NCAA Final Four ten times, with the 2023 squad being the most recent team to accomplish that feat.Tigers Advance to Final Four with 1-0 Win over Creighton In addition to their NCAA titles, the men's program has won 16 combined ACC regular season and tournament titles, with the last one coming in the 2014 ACC Tournament. The Tigers have known five coaches in their history: Fred Kirchner (1934–1939, 8–6–4 record), I. M. Ibrahim (1967–1994, 388–100–31 career record), Trevor Adair (1995–2008, 50–48–10 record at Clemson), Phil Hindson (Interim coach in 2009, 6–12–1 record) and Mike Noonan (2010–present). Famous former Tigers include Oguchi Onyewu, Stuart Holden and Paul Stalteri, all three whom are capped for their respective nations, and Hermann Trophy winners Bruce Murray (1987), Wojtek Krakowiak (1998), and Robbie Robinson (2019).
Women's soccer became a varsity sport at Clemson in 1994. The women's soccer team has won the ACC regular season crown twice, and advanced to the NCAA tournament twenty-four times. The team has never been able to advance past the Semifinals of the NCAA tournament. However, the team has been able to reach the Quarterfinals six times, advancing to the Final Four in 2023. The Tigers have known five coaches in their history Tracey Leone (1994–1998, 89–39–4 career record), Ray Leone (1999–2000, 33–10–3 career record), Todd Bramble (2001–2007, 80–51–17 career record), Hershey Strosberg (2008–2010, 14–39–1 career record), and Eddie Radwanski (2011–present).
Softball
The Tigers first fielded a softball team in the COVID-19 pandemic-shortened 2020 season. In each of their full seasons, the Tigers have made the NCAA Tournament, and reached the Super Regional three times. Pitcher Valerie Cagle won both the Softball America and USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year awards in 2023. Clemson won the ACC Regular Season Title in 2021 and the ACC Softball Tournament in 2025.
Tennis
Men's tennis became a varsity sport at Clemson in 1907. The Tigers have participated in the NCAA Tournament 23 times since dual match play began in 1977, and has been ranked in the top 25 by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association 19 times. Additionally, Lawson Duncan was runner-up in the 1984 NCAA Tournament in singles. Jay Berger was a two-time All-American for Clemson, and went on to a pro career in which his highest world ranking was #7.
The Tiger women have played in 22 NCAA Tournaments since 1976, reaching the semifinals in 2004 and 2005, and the quarterfinals in 1983. They also have 28 ITA Top 25 seasons, including finishing 5th in 2004. Individually, Josipa Bek and Keri Wong were finalists in doubles in 2011, and Gigi Fernández was finalist in singles in 1983, before winning Olympic gold medals in doubles in 1992 and 1996.
Track & field and cross country
Men's track and field was the third official sport at Clemson, with the program beginning in 1905. Cross country was added in 1915, and Clemson began indoor competition in 1931. The men's team finished second at the NCAA indoor meet in 1992 and 1993, and third in 1998 and 1999. Tiger athletes have won 12 indoor and three outdoor individual national titles, and the team has won 12 indoor, 11 outdoor, and seven cross country ACC championships.