Coby's Commentary: Very Encouraging Sight

Sep 27, 2005, 1:46 PM

Well, in light of all that is going on in our world today with athletes being bigger than life and hurricanes being bigger than athletes, I saw something today that really led me to believe that we might just be alright. Sure, we may have lost the last two in overtime, and sure, the debate may rage on about Rob Spence, but for a moment today, I forgot about all of that.

As I was walking to class, 5 minutes late mind you, I saw a group of about 100 kids, ages 8-10, standing outside of Schiletter dining hall. This in itself would not be a story if not for what happened next. Some of these students were gifted, some of these students were slow. Some loved Clemson, and some had probably never heard of the place. I have no idea where these youngsters came from or why they were here, but many of them got the thrill that all young kids love. This spot, I will have you know, is a favorite gathering spot of Clemson athletes, as it is right between the dining hall and Vickery Hall. I heard a teacher say to the kids, "Maybe we can all meet a football player." The kids cheered, but there were no football players to be found. Just as the group(100 strong remember) started to walk away, I noticed Anthony Waters coming towards them. He approached the teacher, asked if he could talk to them, and proceded to stand there and sign every autograph. He wasn't in uniform, and no one would have ever known if he had just walked on by without ever saying anything, but he chose to be different. He chose to be a Tiger.

I watched Waters sign autographs of at least 50 kids, and he was still at it as I left. One asked for his dew rag, and he kindly obliged. He appeared to be worn out from classes, hurting from a shoulder ailment, and on his way to treatment and practice, but for about 10 minutes, he too, forgot about all that made these kids day.

In a time where athletes are becoming more and more self-centered, self-absorbed, and unreliable, this guy is different. Its refreshing to see that we are getting these types of guys. Waters makes some special plays on the field, but he remembers being a kid, coming from a terribly small school and a little town. He remembers being that little kid, who looked up to the Saturday stars. It was nice to see this today, and it made me think that we really could be ok. In the big scheme of things, does it really matter how far downfield we looked on Saturday? We're recruiting quality men, and that is the most important thing.

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