Meeting with the media Wednesday, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney had a message for Tiger fans ahead of the annual Orange & White Spring Game at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

“I will say this to our fans — man, I really hope they’ll show up and we’ll have a great crowd,” Swinney said. “It’s free, but it is a very meaningful opportunity for us as a program, and our fans always show up.”

Swinney noted there are 16 midyear enrollees on the team, and — with no preseason games, exhibitions, jamborees or scrimmages against other teams — Clemson’s spring game “is the only true opportunity that we have to create a game feel” for the true freshmen early enrollees before the regular season begins and they compete in a real game that counts in the win-loss column.

“For a lot of these midyears, this is a big moment because the next time they actually play, the scoreboard’s going to be lit up,” Swinney said. “So, this is a great opportunity to try to hopefully create that game feeling for some of these guys. And then we’ve got some guys that are getting a lot more opportunity, as your team changes every year and you start over.”

The Orange & White Spring Game is set for 1 p.m. Saturday. It can be seen on ACCNX/ESPN+, but Swinney hopes the Tiger faithful will show up in full force at Death Valley.

“It’s going to be a great day … a beautiful sunshine day, so hopefully we’ll have a great crowd,” Swinney said. “We’ve got a lot of recruits coming, a lot of families. So, let’s pack that thing and let’s make it a great day. I think it’ll be a very competitive day.”

On Wednesday, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney gave a rundown of players who will not play on Saturday.

You can check out the rosters for each team here.

A limited number of signed footballs from Clemson’s 2022 class are still available.  Get yours while supplies last!  Visit Clemson Variety & Frame or purchase online!