Tajh Boyd's Parents (article)

May 4, 2009, 10:36 PM

TheClemsonInsider.com had the honor of doing an extensive interview with Tim and Carla Boyd in their beautiful home on Sunday. Very few families experience the recruiting process of one of the top players in the nation. Tim and Carla decided to share the experiences with Clemson nation.

In the first installment of a two part series Tim and Carla discuss the hectic recruiting process, their first meeting with Dabo Swinney and much more!

What was the recruiting process like for you and how hectic was it the last few weeks?

Tim Boyd: It was pretty hectic. At the same time it was more or less Tajh’s on which school he wanted to go to. We were basically leaving it up to him. The schools he had narrowed it down to were Oregon, Ohio State and Clemson. As far as him choosing Oregon it was kind of scary because we knew it was a long way away and how would we be able to see him play. From a support standpoint I would be there for him, but to the point he was real high on Oregon and it was going to be his decision. As far as Ohio State it was seven hours away from Virginia and we were thinking about the weather and things like that. It was very high on his list but in a sense we kind of like knew he was going to choose Clemson. But we were very supportive of him no matter what school he was going to like.

You guys were very friendly to the media. What was it like with the phone ringing all the time?

Carla Boyd: Well the phone did ring a lot and sometimes I would tell Tajh it was his decision but he should shut it down to give him time to think about his future. One time Tajh’s phone beeped for about an hour straight during a visit with the Clemson coaches, Ohio State coaches and Oregon. It kept ringing and buzzing. He would have 20 missed calls and calls from athletes all over the country. It was overwhelming to me as a mother. In the last two weeks I said to Tajh it is your decision and to just go for it. I was going to step away. I wasn’t sure what to believe. At times a coach would visit us and the next week he would be fired. And then we would meet with another coach and turn around and he was gone. It became a factor of who you believe.

What was the first meeting like with Dabo? How did that meeting go and what kind of impact did it have on Tajh’s ultimate decision?

Carla Boyd: Initially I talked with coach Napier on the phone and he told me Miss Carla, he always called me Miss Carla. He said come and take a visit. He said if you will come take a visit to Clemson you will not regret it. It was Tajh’s last visit and there were times where I wouldn’t answer the phone because I wasn’t sure what Tajh wanted to do. We did take the visit and then coach Swinney made that one in-home visit. Coach Swinney, coach Pearman who we knew from Maryland and coach Napier came. Coach Swinney had some kind of spirit in my living room that I couldn’t explain. When he looked us in the eye and said he would give Tajh a fair shot at quarterback. He sat for a while. He was energetic. A very nice coaching staff. It was just something about coach Swinney as a mom that I knew he would give Tajh a chance to get on the football field if he worked hard. So when coach Swinney left I liked him, but I didn’t want Tajh to go on the decision based on what I felt. I wanted him to make the decision on his own. So Tajh soaked it up. He soaked up everything from all of the schools and it became real hectic down to the last 24 hours.

You have told me this story, but share with everyone what your reaction was when coach Swinney shared the story about his life?

Tim Boyd: It is a story where it will basically make you shed some little tears. It kind of relates to a regular person that doesn’t have everything given to him in life. He basically had to earn everything. That reminds me of Tajh in a certain way. Because of the way he was brought up. He has earned everything that he has got right now. He wasn’t given a position like a father as a coach would give his son as a kid. Playing football he earned everything from playing offensive lineman when he wanted to quit at seven or eight years old to being third string quarterback on a little league team. Me telling him that as long as he kept working hard and kept sticking with it that he could not only be a quarterback, but a top quarterback. I have seen thing from Tajh by working with him growing up. I seen things that I didn’t really see with a young kid that was dedication and determination. I told him that you don’t want to be an area or a state player, you want to be a national player. It is like a storybook ending to this situation. It just reminds me of coach Swinney’s situation and how he was a walkon at the University of Alabama to the point where he was just a wide receiver coach here and now he got his shot at being a head coach. It kind of brought tears to my eyes.

http://www.theclemsoninsider.com/default.php?page=article&type=fullview&articleId=374

flag link

military_tech

thumb_down

thumb_up

Tajh Boyd's Parents (article)

TigerBoard POTD