EA Sports has revealed its rankings for the Toughest Places to Play ahead of the release of the College Football 25 game next month. Memorial Stadium at Clemson made the top 25, coming in at No. 12.
There’s no doubt that Memorial Stadium, also known as Death Valley, is an intimidating place for opponents to come into.
The crowd arrives early and is loud, beginning with the “Walk of Champions” during warmups. A DJ also gets the crowd fired up during pregame, before the team returns to the locker room to prepare for “The Most Exciting 25 Seconds in College Football.”
One of the best traditions in college football is without a doubt running down the hill at Clemson.
ESPN’s Chris Fowler said this of the tradition in 2016: “If you are lucky enough to ever witness this, you will not forget it. It is perhaps the greatest entrance in sports.”
Since the late 1960s, Clemson teams have rubbed Howard’s Rock, before running down the hill, just minutes before kickoff. The saying goes, “If you’re not going to give 110 percent, keep your filthy hands off my rock.”
It’s fair to say that Clemson players and the team give their all at Death Valley. The Tigers had won 40 consecutive home games until November of 2022 when the streak was snapped with a loss to rival South Carolina. The 40 straight home wins is an ACC record and had been the longest streak in college football since an impressive run by Nebraska in the 1990s.
Dabo Swinney has built Clemson into a powerhouse, and the success playing at home is a big part of that. Even during what was considered a “down” year in 2023, Memorial Stadium proved to be an incredibly difficult place to play.
A top-5 Florida State team trailed Clemson by double-digits for much of the first half and was down a touchdown late in the third quarter, before rallying for an overtime victory.
That ended up being the only home loss for Clemson in 2023 as the Tigers earned impressive wins over ranked Notre Dame and North Carolina squads.
If you need more evidence of just how hard it is to play at Memorial Stadium, during the College Football Playoff era the Tigers are 65-3 at Death Valley. That mark is right up there with Alabama for the best home record during that time frame.
Clemson will play seven home games at Death Valley in 2025, beginning with a matchup against Appalachian State on Sept. 7.
Note: EA College Football 25’s ranking of the toughest places to play in College Football 25 factors in historical stats such as home winning percentage, home game attendance, active home winning streaks, team prestige, and more.
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