“I hope to fill in some of the gaps you might have so that when you leave for home, you’re comfortable making an informed decision. When you’ve weighed all your options, I think that Clemson might be the best place for you. I want to be clear about something, though. If you’re not looking for structure or discipline, then Clemson is not the right place for you. If you don’t want to go to class to get an education, Clemson is not the right place for you. Or if you’re going to be a young man who’ll cause problems, then Clemson is not the right place for you,” Coach Swank said.
It was clear that rules were important here, and that Clemson had certain expectations of its players. I was glad that they felt strongly about those things. I didn’t foresee any issues with it and knew my parents were happy that I wasn’t going to be allowed to run wild.
“Currently, it’s not personal,” Coach Swank continued. “When you get here, it will be personal. We care about our players as a team and about each of you individually as young men who are entrusted to our care. On my part, I don’t claim to be perfect, and I’m sure that I’ll make mistakes, but that’s part of the growth process. I feel it’s my responsibility to share with you my knowledge to help you grow into the best possible version of yourself. We at Clemson want you to become a good young man.
“When you talk to our young men’s parents, they’ll tell you how happy they are with all the hard work their sons have put in. They’ll say how it has paid off, not only on the football field but by them becoming responsible young men with bright futures.
“When I look at you, I see the poster child for what we’re trying to accomplish at Clemson. You have athletic skills that should translate well to the college game. You’re also a leader who’s charismatic. Combine that with your intelligence, and I can see great things happening for you. I also see a young man who’s ready for a challenge. Am I correct in that assumption?” he asked.
“Yes, sir,” I replied.
“Good, because I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t recruit the best possible players. If I do what I’m supposed to, there should be four other guys with equal or better talent on the team at your position,” Coach Swank explained.
When he said it like that, it made perfect sense for Clemson. I would have to decide if it made perfect sense for me.
Coaches Swank and Brady talked about how they envisioned me fitting in at Clemson. It was apparent that everything I’d been told was true. They would work my butt off, but in return, they would have my back. One of the problems at State had been the treatment of players. They’d fired their coach because he was more worried about wins than the health of his team. With the pressure to win games, you could see where coaches would look out for their best interests ahead of those of the players they’d recruited.
The other side of it was the treatment of the players who didn’t seem to work out. It wasn’t uncommon at some schools to try to force out players who didn’t cut it. It was refreshing to hear what the Clemson coaches were saying.
I guess it was good that I’d learned to take my time in making a decision because I was leaning towards going to Clemson. If I was forced to pick today, it would be a coin flip between Michigan and here. It was good to have choices.
The last thing I did was check out the baseball facilities. Clemson had gone 44–21 overall, but only 16–13 in conference play. They’d finished behind number 10 Louisville, number 26 Notre Dame, and number 12 Florida State in the ACC Atlantic Division. Number 1 Virginia and number 6 Miami (FL) were atop the Coastal Division. I was assured that if I came, they would let me play baseball.
◊◊◊
When we finally got home, we found Caryn and Megan talking to Greg and Angie.
“Unca David! Unca David!” Mac and Kyle yelled as they ran to me.
“What’s up, Munchkins?”
“We not munchkins,” Mac complained.
They then told me all about going to Grandma Dawson’s farm and seeing goats. Peggy came in the back door, and I heard two crying babies. Duke came in and promptly knocked Nate down. We now had three crying babies. Mac looked around and started to scrunch up her face. I clapped my hands.
“No crying,” I ordered.
That seemed to work for Nate and Mac. Coby and Little David needed their dad.
“They’re shook-up. I had to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting a squirrel,” Peggy explained.
I wanted to tell her to go ahead and off the squirrel instead of risking an accident. Instead, I worked my magic on my boys.
Mom saw that no one had thought about dinner, so she had Greg order Monical’s. Dad and I took the still-snuffling boys to the office to talk to Caryn and Megan.
◊◊◊
“Granny and Mary saw the finished videos you and Tracy made. They want to use them as advertising,” Caryn said.
“I think they’re too long,” I guessed.
Most ads were under a minute, and both videos were closer to three.
“I talked to a couple of TV stations, and they had another idea. They would use the clips as filler on their morning shows. They suggested that Thursday mornings would be best. I got one to accept ten episodes,” Caryn said.
“I’m not sure I want to commit to something like that.”
Then I had another thought.
“You realize doing that will count towards my ‘business time,’” I pointed out.
“Speaking of schedules, your Japanese classes start this week,” Megan said.
I just nodded. When I looked at my calendar, I’d seen that it had been added.
I was glad when our meeting was over in record time. I think Dad planned it to end when the pizza arrived.
It was nice to have family time tonight. The boys were being clingy, so I offered to take them to my place tonight to sleep. I could tell that Peggy needed a break.
Somehow, Greg and I ended up with all five little ones. My two got their baths and were ready to sleep, so I put them in their beds.
“How have you been?” Greg asked.
“I’d finally had enough and pushed back on having my life planned 24/7.”
“I’ll bet Brook is happy.”
“She sure seems to be. She joined us on this weekend’s trip. I’m glad I decided to have a steady girlfriend.”
“I wondered about that. If I were you, I’d probably be going a little crazy,” Greg said.
I knew better. Greg never went out with multiple girls at once. He also never dated anyone for more than four to six weeks.
“How are you and Angie doing?” I asked.
He took a deep breath and slowly let it out.
“There are days I’m the happiest man in the world, and then …” he trailed off.
Angie could be self-centered. She and I had locked horns a couple of times when she acted selfishly.
Greg and I left his doubts unstated. His little ones had finally run down, and I helped him gather them up and take them to the car. I gave my brother a hug and said a silent prayer.
◊◊◊ Monday October 3
I took the boys to the house and found a rested Peggy making coffee.
“Were they any trouble?”
“No, they slept through the night,” I said as I put them into their high chairs.
Peggy scattered some Cheerios on Coby and Little David’s trays to keep them busy while she made their breakfast. I decided I wanted grits after my trip down south. As I got the pot started, Chuck came in the back door. Duke gave him a cursory once-over and left it to Bandit to guard the house. Chuck picked up the complaining cat to give him some attention.
“Paul finally clued you in about breakfast?” I asked.
“Yes, and he’s a dick,” Chuck said.
“Chuck!” Mom scolded when she came in the room with Dad in tow.
“Sorry, Mrs. Dawson.”
He was such a wimp.
While we ate, Mom had more to say to make my day.