Met with approval
By: rmacrae@bellsouth.net December 20, 2014

By Hale McGranahan.

SOUTHERN PINES, N.C. – Follow the visits and they’ll take you to the decision. That’s an adage that held true in Sean Pollard’s commitment to Clemson.

Pollard camped at Clemson in the summer. Then, four times in the fall, he made the near five hour ride from Southern Pines to Clemson.

Members of Pollard’s immediate family accompanied him for various excursions during football season: mom, dad, brother, baby sister and grandma.

TheClemsonInsider caught up with Pollard’s parents, Melissa and Steve, after the announcement at Pinecrest High School.

“I’m so excited for Sean. I’m so excited he’s going to Clemson. They’re great. They’ve been wonderful,” Melissa said. “I think it’s going to be a good fit for him. We’re very excited about it all, very blessed.”

The distance isn’t too great for her.

“I like the spirit that I’ve heard, I haven’t been there to see a game yet, but I’ve heard of all the excitement on game days,” she said. “They’ve been really good to Sean. They’ve been good to me when I’ve been down there. I just think they have the same values that we have.”

Steve echoed those sentiments

“I love Clemson,” he said. “Don’t get me wrong, it was a very difficult decision for him. It was hard…I will not make a decision like that, it just wouldn’t happen. It’s not my decision. It was his, and it was very hard.

“I mean, let’s face it, at the D-1 level, all these programs are class act programs. They’re just at a higher level and they’re really excellent. It’s just something about Clemson that kind of sealed the deal. I loved going there.

“We enjoyed the whole time — I’ve been there quite a few times there now and just loved every minute of it. We enjoyed ourselves, we went to a game when my son was here on leave, the one that’s in the military, we went to a game. We had a ball together. It was just me, Sean and Steven.”

Steve added, “There’s just something about Clemson. It’s a neat place. And it’s an extension. To me, when you walk out of the house, you feel like you’re walking into the second home.”