Why do Clemson fans use $2 bills? Unveiling the football tradition of the ACC powerhouse
If you or someone you know is a Clemson fan, you would know that they hold a particular tradition close to heart: having $2 bills on hand, especially during big games on the road.
So why do Clemson fans use $2 bills? Why do these bills have the Clemson Tiger paw on them? To answer this question, we'll go into what this tradition entails, how it started, and why. So read on!
Why do Clemson fans use $2 bills?
In short, Clemson fans use $2 bills to show off how they can spend money on major athletic events. The tradition is said to have started in 1977. That year, Georgia Tech didn't want to play against the school, so students and alumni protested.
The protests were done by stamping Tiger Paws on $2 bills and using them in Atlanta. This was to show how much money Clemson fans spent in or around major athletic events.
The protest was the brainchild of George Bennett, then-executive secretary of Clemson's IPTAY (I Pay Ten a Year) collegiate club. By stamping the paws on the bills, Tiger fans wanted Georgia Tech to realize that they have a massive impact on the economy every time their team plays away from the Memorial Stadium.
Why did Georgia Tech refuse to play against Clemson in 1977?
There is no directly available information stating the exact reason for this. All that is known is this decision was made a year before the Yellowjackets joined the ACC.
Numerous Tiger fans, including Clemson athletics booster George Bennett, really did not want this situation. That's because playing in Atlanta meant playing in a bowl game, something that the program hadn't gone to at that point since 1959. Eventually, the series resumed in 1983.
Keeping it alive 45 years on
Every single avid Clemson football fan can never travel to an away game without these $2 bills in their wallets. In recent years, these bills tend to be collectibles rather than actual currency.
Fans not only ensure that they bring their own, but urge others attending games to have their bills on them. It is truly a tradition that's stood the test of time.