Charles Barkley, Darryl Strawberry drop in on Clemson football practice
Former NBA All-Star Charles Barkley and former MLB All-Star Darryl Strawberry stopped by Clemson football practice this week.
Barkley spoke to the team Monday, while Strawberry was a guest to coach Dabo Swinney and spoke Tuesday. Monday was the Tigers’ third practice of preseason camp. Stawberry was out in the afternoon watching the offense and kickoff team practice.
It’s not unusual for college football teams to bring in motivational speakers and sports celebrities who can address the players. Having those speakers can help break up the routine of daily preseason camp practices and team meetings that consume a player’s entire day until classes start later in August.
Barkley admitted to the Tigers he had only one day’s worth of experience as a football player before giving it up at a young age. Instead of football talk, sophomore defensive lineman Bryan Bresee said the former NBA player spoke to the team about different life lessons.
“He’s a role model to a lot of people in our room, watching him growing up, maybe a little bit after, his highlights and everything,” Bresee said. “It was cool to be able to meet him in person and hear what he had to say. It was awesome.”
Clemson wasn’t the only program welcoming celebrity guests to campus Monday. South Carolina hosted former NFL All-Pro quarterback Michael Vick, a former teammate of Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer. Vick and Beamer played together at Virginia Tech in the late 1990s.
This story was originally published August 9, 2021 at 5:26 PM.
