COLUMBIA, S.C. — Adam Randall’s career at Clemson has been anything but conventional.
A product of Myrtle Beach High School, Randall signed with the Tigers as a four-star wide receiver in the 2022 recruiting class.
After arriving on campus and being the talk of his first spring practice, Randall suffered a torn ACL shortly before his first spring game. In fact, injuries continued to hamper him at times during his sophomore and junior seasons. It seemed he just couldn’t catch a break.
By the end of his junior season, with Bryant Wesco and T.J. Moore emerging at receiver, Randall was playing minimal snaps. Then, it happened. Randall caught his break.
Ahead of the College Football Playoff game against Texas, Randall was moved to running back. With Phil Mafah dealing with a shoulder injury and Jay Haynes tearing an ACL in the ACC Championship win over SMU, the Tigers needed some help at the position.
Randall quickly proved his worth, breaking off a big run against the Longhorns that kick-started the offense. While Randall only had four carries in the game, it was easy to see the potential. After Clemson was eliminated by Texas, head coach Dabo Swinney announced Randall was moving to running back for his final season.
During his lone season at the position, Randall has been more than serviceable as the Tigers’ starting running back and on Saturday, he turned in arguably his best performance of the season in the 28-14 win over rival South Carolina.
The Tigers leaned on Randall in some of the game’s biggest moments, and the senior delivered. He carried the ball 24 times and went over the century mark for the fourth time this season.
“Just being from South Carolina, growing up in this rivalry, just seeing it through the years, I have been in the stands a lot of games, just being able to go out there and compete means a lot,” Randall said. “Coming out with a win is really special.”
Randall’s 10-yard run early in the second quarter gave Clemson an early 7-0 lead, and coming in, the Tigers were 93-9 when scoring first since the beginning of the 2015 season.
“This is the things you dream of,” Randall added. “I was telling the team, going out there as a captain, you dream of that as a kid. I am glad we had the opportunity to come out of here with a win.”
“Us getting it done is just a dream come true.”
Having grown up in the Palmetto State, Randall has been fully immersed in the rivalry since an early age, and when the Tigers lost at home to the Gamecocks last season after not having trailed until with just over a minute remaining, it stung.
That loss served as a little extra motivation, as Randall didn’t want to experience that feeling again. Winning in Williams-Brice Stadium just made it that much sweeter.
“It was a huge motivation factor,” Randall said. “Obviously, you never want to lose on your home field. Just having the opportunity to come down here and get the bitter taste out of our mouths was special. I think Willy B is a great atmosphere. When you play in South Carolina in high school, you always wanted to get to Willy B in a state championship. Just being able to play here in college is really special.”
On top of his second-quarter touchdown, Randall also caught a two-point conversion that put the Tigers up 14 points. While those moments were memorable, Randall will also remember all the other things that transpired, including every tough yard he gained in helping Clemson knock off the Gameocks in what was his final appearance in the rivalry series.
“Obviously, when you go out there, you build on to your legacy,” Randall said. “Last year, things happened at our place, and we didn’t come out on top. We just really focused this week on coming out with a victory. Just giving that to our fans and the university.”
Photo by Bart Boatwright