Team Name: Tigers Nickname Established: 1896 with first football team Mascot: Tiger Costumed Mascot: The Tiger and The Tiger Cub, also The Country Gentleman until 1972 Costumed Mascot Debut: The Tiger est. 1954, The Tiger Cub est. 1993, no info on The Country Gentleman's debut Live Mascot: No Live Mascot Debut: n/a Team Colors: Orange and Purple University Location: Clemson, South Carolina
Why does Clemson have a tiger mascot? It's not because tigers are native to South Carolina. The composite story of the accounts I've found have to do with Walter Merritt Riggs, the university's president from 1910-1924. Known as the "Father of Clemson Football" because he brought football to Clemson from his alma mater Alabama Polytechnic Institute (now Auburn University). Riggs also brought API's old football jerseys, the school colors and the school mascot to Clemson in 1896 when he fielded the first football team. The stories vary on whether Riggs or the football team decided to keep Tigers as the mascot. There was also mention of the team being inspired by the Princeton Tigers football championship that year.
How many push ups can a Tiger do? Though it's not basketball related, it's worth noting the Clemson Tiger mascot push up tradition, which has nothing to do with undergarments or frozen confections. Each time the Clemson football team scores, the Tiger mascot does push ups equal to Clemson's total score in the game. Mascot Zack Mills started the tradition in 1978. The single game push up record is 465 by mascot Ricky Capps in a 1981 game against Wake Forest. The Tiger & Tiger Cub page of the Clemson Athletic site has detailed records of other push up stats. And yes, push ups are part of the criteria for mascot tryouts at Clemson. There is no basketball equivalent of the football push up.
