The last time Hunter Renfrow went to Washington, D.C., he was in the fifth grade and it was an 11-hour bus ride from Myrtle Beach, S.C. to the nation’s capital.

However his second trip, which happened earlier this month, took just five seconds, sort of speak. That’s the time it took for quarterback Deshaun Watson to find Renfrow in the right side of the end zone for the game-winning touchdown, lifting Clemson to its first national championship in 35 years and securing his team’s visit to the White House, where they met President Donald Trump.

As he sat on the steps and listened to President Trump speak so highly of Clemson and then have him call out his name, Renfrow described the experience as one of the best of his life.

“It made me proud to be an American,” Renfrow said. “To be up there at the White House and to be able to celebrate a tradition like that it was pretty great.”

When Renfrow came with his elementary school back in the fifth grade, he said they got to experience a lot of Washington. They experienced The Mall, the monuments and learned a lot about some of the historical events and creations in all the museums. However, the one thing they did not get to do was go to the White House.

“I never got to go to the White House so to be able to go in there and experience the history of it was pretty neat and pretty special,” Clemson’s junior wide receiver said. “I’m very appreciative of the tradition and glad we could keep it going.”

Ten years ago, when he was on the bus and was just a kid with a dream, Renfrow never imagined that a decade later he would be on a flight, with his Clemson teammates, headed towards Washington, D.C. for a second time.

He never imagined he get to meet the President of the United States, stand and talk to him in the Oval Office and then participate in one of sport’s grandest traditions. And to think, all it took was five seconds and of course catching the winning pass, too.

“It is a credit to my teammates,” Renfrow said. “It was not just me or Deshaun (Watson) or Ben (Boulware), it was the whole team. We came together and did something special.”

And it made him proud to be an American … and a Clemson Tiger, too.

—Photo Credit: Rafael Suanes-USA TODAY Sports

Hot off the Press!!!  Have you ordered the 2017 Clemson season preview ‘Best is the Standard’ from the staff that covers Clemson football 365 days a year? Order yours today to make sure you get a copy!