The Clemson Dubcast

David Hale of ESPN.com joins the podcast to talk what life has been like as a national reporter over the last few months, both within the job and within his social-media interaction. He also gives his perspective on how much Dabo Swinney has evolved as the world around him changes in profound ways. And finally, he shares the big green revelation that has changed his culinary life.

 

Sharone Wright shares the story of an infection he contracted while swimming with his children in a pool, later leading to the amputation of one of his legs. The former Clemson basketball star reflects on the bond he still shares with his basketball brethren at Clemson including Elden Campbell, Horace Grant, Dale Davis and Wayne Buckingham. He recounts why he, a McDonald's All-American who could've gone anywhere, spurned North Carolina and Duke to come to Clemson. He then gives his perspective on the recent boycotts and protests in the NBA and elsewhere.

While most everyone has been consumed with whether college football will be played this fall in the ACC, SEC and Big 12, there are a bunch of basketball teams who are doing everything they can to play too. In a wide-ranging conversation, Brad Brownell talks of how well his team has handled the virus (one positive test since early June, and that one asymptomatic) and updates on what's been going on behind the scenes as the ACC's basketball coaches try to help provide a logical, safe path forward. Brownell also shares his excitement over the young talent that's been recruited to his program.

Ben Traywick is a Charleston lawyer who weighs in on the emerging topic of universities and susceptibility to lawsuits from athletes as they press forward with sports. While prominent sports attorney Tom Mars has sounded dire warnings about the "Death Star" of plaintiffs attorneys bringing the ACC, SEC and Big 12 to their knees with lawsuits, Traywick is skeptical of such a scenario for a variety of reasons.

Dan Hope formerly covered Clemson Football for the Anderson Independent-Mail before moving to Columbus, Ohio to cover the Buckeyes for the website Eleven Warriors. He shares his perceptions of the fallout from the Big Ten canceling fall football and provides a window into the anger of fans who will have nothing to cheer for this fall. He also shares what it's like to be a sportswriter with no games to cover for at least the next several months.

Aaron Brenner covered Clemson for The (Charleston) Post and Courier before leaving the journalism industry for a career as a mortgage broker in Denver. He reflects on the factors that led him to change course, and he looks from afar at the state of college sports, social media and Clemson football.

Former Clemson offensive lineman Landon Walker chronicles how he shifted from football to a NASCAR pit crew with Hendrick Motorsports. He's also five years into owning his own trucking company that employs 30-35 drivers (his wife Kristy is the president).

Walker, from North Wilkesboro, N.C., looks back on a college career that included Clemson's first ACC title in two decades when the Tigers broke through and won the 2011 crown. 

He reminisces about fun times with his best friend at Clemson, Willy Korn, and reflects on how Korn handled the mammoth celebrity and expectations that accompanied his arrival to Clemson.

Walker and his wife have one child and are expecting another in October.

Former Clemson offensive lineman Kalon Davis recounts the awful story of losing his father in a fire that destroyed the family's home in Chester this past spring, and his mother suffering severe burns that put her in the burn unit in Augusta. South Florida coach Jeff Scott started a GoFundMe account that raised more than $56,000 from 801 donors to help the Davis family with expenses. Davis is currently a graduate assistant under Scott at USF in Tampa.

 

Antoine McClain, also a former Clemson offensive lineman, reflects on the depression that followed the realization that his football career was probably over. He worked different jobs during the transition, including loading freight onto cargo planes for UPS in Arizona, before finding that his calling was player development. He worked for the NFL and is now at the University of Tennessee, where he is an assistant in student-athlete development.

Former Clemson tight end Akeem Robinson tells the wild story of how he ended up at Clemson, the culture shock of moving from Miami and adjusting to life in Clemson, his amazing journey of being homeless in Missouri, living in a frat house, and then the path that led to him working now as the head strength coach at Southeastern University while also pursuing his doctorate in strategic leadership.

Former Clemson linebacker Jonathan "Tig" Willard shares the story of how he ended up in the fast lane as a NASCAR pit-crew member. Willard also shares some of his more memorable moments from Clemson, and gives his thoughts on Dabo Swinney taking the program to college football's mountaintop.

Brandon Maye grew up sharing a two-bedroom apartment with 15 people in the projects of Mobile, Ala. "Most of the people in my family were high-school dropouts." So when he realized his dream of an NFL career wasn't going to materialize, he felt he let his mother down. "I got in the car and I drove to my elementary school, my middle school and my high school. I came upon a bridge and I tried to drive my car off the bridge. But my car cuts off, and I hear the voice of God say: "I require more from you."

Former Clemson tight end Ben Hall shares the remarkable story of how he quit his job in manufacturing to pursue a passion for making people happy by making desserts. After getting his start at home with just a stove and a tabletop mixer, Hall is now the proud owner of Big Ben's Desserts in Lyman, S.C. And his customers just can't get enough.

Roman Fry reminisces about his Clemson days and recalls a spring-break trip he and Nathan Bennett took to Panama City Beach. "We decided to join in this game called King of the Ring, where there was a circle and these guys who thought they were pretty tough throwing anybody who came inside the circle outside the circle. The next thing I know we're in there and we're taking on as many as we can, back-to-back. We stayed King of the Ring for five straight hours, no joke. Somehow we did it. A few beers were involved, actually a lot more than a few. Clemson's offensive line won the day there. I'm learning that the players now don't do as much of that, which might be a good thing."

And Dalton Freeman reflects on being a part of the transformation of Clemson football under Dabo Swinney from being a redshirt in 2008, to closing his college career with a pivotal bowl triumph over LSU in 2012.