Heading down South to the land of the pines; A Maryland fan travels to Clemson, S.C.

For the first time in this Terp’s Maryland sports career, he took a trip down to South Carolina to watch his beleaguered football team face one of the best in the country in No. 13 Clemson. And what a culture shock it was.

Aside from the actual game (we’ll get to that later) the football culture in the South is something every fan should experience at least once. The entire town of Clemson was pretty much shut down for the day aside from eateries, which were filled all afternoon. Major roads were closed, and a sea of orange enveloped entire stretches of roads, sidewalks and plazas.

I tailgated and walked around the area for about three hours before the game, and aside from my Maryland compatriot saw exactly two other people wearing Terrapin gear. We were such an anomaly, at some point my friend and I were asked to pose for a photograph because we “weren’t wearing orange”.

While I don’t want to disrespect a College Park that throws formidable tailgates of their own, the difference here was that the Terrapins were arguably one of the least hyped games of the season for the BCS contender, yet I was still stunned at the transformation of the town from the night before.

Another aspect of the scene I was pleasantly surprised by was the lack of heckling I received as a visiting fan. Again, perhaps this was because Maryland isn’t exactly a football rival, but I was not once yelled at the entire day while I proudly wore my Terps T-shirt. There were no negative chants in my direction while I sat in the Clemson student section, although I stuck out like a sore red thumb. I doubt Maryland fans would give a Clemson fan the same treatment, and while some may say heckling visiting fans is a just enterprise, cursing them out is a slightly different story.

Once the game started, the pleasant taste in my mouth of the trip soon soured as Maryland fell behind early and for all intents and purposes was out of the game by the end of the first quarter. Even at this juncture, however, the commentary I had with Clemson fans was their genuine sympathy at Maryland’s injury situation, and not simply “Maryland sucks”.

While I don’t tend to agree with everything that goes on in the South, this trip was an eye-opening experience in the most positive way. As a Terps fan, I hope we can one day develop a similar deep passion for our football team, but as long as March Madness becomes a staple in College Park once again, I guess I can leave football to Death Valley.