CLEMSON S.C. — The way fans poured over the railing, you would have thought Donald Trump or Pope Francis were in town.
Such is the life of Deshaun Watson these days.
The former Gainesville High standout receives star-level adulation at Clemson, as evidenced by the throngs that surrounded him Saturday after the Tigers’ annual spring game at Memorial Stadium.
Clemson set a new spring game attendance record of 50,500 -- and almost all of them wanted to get a glimpse, and a quick feel, of their star quarterback.
“The fans have been great to me in my time here,” Watson said during a 12-minute interview after quarterbacking both sides of the Orange vs. White two-hour scrimmage. He signed autographs during a slow procession to the locker room for about five minutes immediately following the game -- completely engulfed by a sea of orange-clad fans in tow.
He was the first Clemson quarterback since Charlie Whitehurst in 2004 to quarterback both teams during the spring game.
“I didn’t know that was going to be the plan until (Friday). It was good to get a chance to play with all the guys on offense. Right now I’m just trying to be the best player I can be and be the best person I can be. It’s nice to have this kind of support. I really appreciate it.”
The question on the minds of most Clemson fans, however, is how much longer will they get to enjoy Watson's skills in Death Valley. He is sure to be a Heisman Trophy favorite this season and already is being mentioned as a potential top draft pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. He is on schedule to graduate from Clemson in December.
Watson wasn’t being intentionally evasive but instead tried to focus more on the here and now.
“It’s nice to be thought of (as a high NFL draft pick) but we’re still trying to prepare for the 2016 season, and there is a lot of things that can happen,” he said. “I’m not worried about any individual things. Our goal is to try and get better each week and try to win the ACC and have a chance at a national title. That’s all we’re really thinking about.”
The ending to the 2015 season was nearly a perfect one for Watson and the Tigers.
Watson finished third in the Heisman voting and led Clemson to a second place finish in the National College Football Playoff after a gut-wrenching 45-40 loss to Alabama in the title game. Given perhaps 30 more seconds of playing time Watson would have delivered the Tigers' their first National Championship since 1981.
Watson played just four series Saturday, two for each side, 15 snaps in all. That was more than enough, however, to see little had changed since January. He finished 7-of-11 for 141 yards and two touchdowns. Two passes were batted down after poor blocking, one was dropped, and another was just off the fingertips of the receiver on a 50-yard bomb.
He connected with redshirt-sophomore Hunter Renfrow for a 47-yard strike on the second play of the scrimmage for the Orange team and capped the opening drive with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Renfrow.
Watson’s first possession with the White wasn’t quite as sharp. After a 4-yard loss on a screen pass and a batted pass on third down they were forced to punt. Watson then gave way to backups Kelly Bryant and Nick Schuessler for two series.
He returned for the Orange and wasted little time in hitting a streaking Ray-Ray McCloud in stride for a 61-yard bomb for his second TD throw in his first eight attempts. He guided the White one more time and narrowly missed on a 50-yard pass to Artavis Scott. He spent the rest of the scrimmage chatting with coaches and players.
It was a far cry from a year ago when Watson was unable to play in the spring game while rehabbing a knee injury suffered late in his freshman season.
“It felt good to get out there. I think it has helped being able to be here the whole spring. The main thing is playing together and getting to know each other,” Watson said. “We have a lot of younger guys and it was good to be able to see what they can do and who was ready and who can play.”
Obviously, Watson and Clemson fans would like to see him and the team improve on both the Heisman and championship endings in 2016. But, would Watson consider returning for his senior season if neither of those goals came to fruition?
“I haven’t thought about that at all,” he said. “We’ll just have to see what happens this season and how things end up. I still have a lot of things I can improve on and that’s what I’m working on. As a team we have a lot of things we need to improve on.
“It would be great if we could finish just a little bit better than last year. But we have a long way to go.”
If Clemson fans have their way, the journey would be a slow, steady procession ending on Monday, Jan. 9 in Tampa Bay -- with Watson once again swamped by a sea of celebrating, adulating orange.
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