NEW ORLEANS– Clemson slot back Hunter Renfrow may look unassuming when he takes the field against Alabama Monday night in the College Football playoff semi-finals here at the Super Dome. The Tigers’ baby faced red shirt junior is only 5-10, 180-pounds and was just 155 when he arrived on campus as a walk on.
But he has been the Tide’s biggest nightmare the last two years when two college football powers split a pair of national championships and created a rivalry for the ages.
Renfrow has owned Alabama, making 17 catches for 180 yards and four touchdowns against Alabama during the first two games of this trilogy. He was the surprise star of Clemson’s 35-31 2017 victory last January, catching 10 passes for 92 yards and two touchdowns, including the game winner on a two-yard pass from quarterback DeShaun Watson in the final seconds of a dramatic finish in Tampa.
“I think it’s just my competitive spirit, maybe,’’ he said when asked how he managed to compete so successfully on the biggest of stages. “And I think it was them trying to take away Mike Williams and Deon Cain and Artavis Scott and make us earn the underneath stuff and we’ve been able to do that the last of years.’’
Renfrow has since become an instant celebrity on campus and is still signing copies of Sports Illustrated with his magical moment immortalized on the cover. “It can be overwhelming at times,’’ he admitted. “But I enjoy it
“He’s a baller,’’ Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “I think he’s going to be a great NFL player someday. When you step on the field, it’s not always about how big you are. He’s an inspiration to his teammates. I think he’s an inspiration to a lot of people because he’s just kind of an ordinary guys. Most of you all would walk right by Hunter Renfrow and never think he’s Hunter Renfrow
“I think he epitomizes our program. I said that last year. I think the epitome of our program was the last play in the national championship. You have a five-star quarterback throwing a game winning pass to a walk on receiver. We’re going to play the best guy. And the best guy is the guy who earns it and does it on the practice field. It’s not the highest-recruited guy or who others think should be the guy. It’s the guy who earned it. And that’s just embraced by everybody in our program.’’
Renfrow had no idea his career would wind up like this.
Renfrow grew up as a die hard Clemson fan who dreamed of suiting up for the Tigers when he was an option style quarterback playing for his father Tim at Socastee High School in Myrtle Beach and attended a Clemson camp before his senior year. Co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott had been tipped off about Renfrow by a former college coach who knew the area well and believed Renfrow was being severely under recruited.
The first time Scott saw him, he winced. “He looked like he was in eighth grade,’’ Scott said. At camp, Renfrow flashed enough athleticism that had Appalachian State and Gardner-Webb recruiting him as a receiver and center fielder in baseball. Afterwards, the Clemson coaches pulled him aside and offered a spot on the team as a walk on.
“Driving back to Myrtle Beach, I was crushed,’’ he admitted. “But I decided to turn it into a positive. I realized I’m either going to feel sorry for myself or I’m going to embrace it and realize it can be a positive. Nothing was going to be given to me. I was going to have to earn it.’’
Renfrow got a lot of his motivation from his father. “He attended Wofford and was the captain of the Shrine Bowl team. All 5-7 of him,’’ Renfrow said.
Renfrow, knowing Swinney was a walk-on receiver at Alabama, was willing to a gamble on playing at the highest level because he felt the coaches would give him a fair shot. “I was 95 percent Clemson, 5 percent the other schools,’’ he admitted. “You have to believe in your dreams.’’
Renfrow was an preferred walk on who arrived with the scholarship players his freshman year. There were questions about his size, but he had a natural gift of getting open and did not drop passes. He also the ability to shift directions after making a catch on the scout team, which drove the starters in the secondary crazy.
He caught his first break the spring after his red shirt year. Renfrow was listed as a third team receiver. “They had a highly recruited freshman listed ahead of me,’’ he recalled. “The first day of spring practice, he dropped two passes When practice ended, I was running with the second team.’’
Renfrow was given a scholarship in Aug. 2015 before he ever played his first game. He got his first notice as a red shirt freshman when he caught a key 24-yard pass to set up a touchdown in a win over Notre Dame. Then he caught two touchdowns during a 45-40 loss to Alabama in the 2016 championship game when he was named co-Player of the Game with Watson.
Renfrow will enter the third showdown against Clemson with 55 catches and reputation as Mr. Clutch after making 19 third down catches—16 which led to first downs—this fall. “He’s a pain in the you know what,’’ Alabama coach Nick Saban said.
“I think he meant ‘side,’’’ Renfrow said. ‘It’s pretty cool to have one of the best to ever coach acknowledge you. Pretty cool.’’
“The guy is pretty quick, very instinctive as a player,’’ Saban said. “Know how to get open, makes the right decisions, really kind of a go to player for them on third down. So very, very crafty, very, very quick and very smart in how they use him. They utilize him very well. And he’s very effective in doing what they ask of them.’’
Renfrow knows Alabama, particularly All American defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick– will be more aware of him this time and the Tide might even go with a six man secondary. “If they take me away, we hand the ball off to Travis Etienne or Tavien Feaster and then we throw it to Deon (Cain) and Ray-Ray (McCloud),’’ he said. “Just spread the ball around. I don’t care if I have 10 catches or 10 fumbles, as long as we win.’’’
Renfrow admits he will be nervous, just the way he was two years ago. But he is also confident the Tigers can advance. “it’s one thing to think you can do it’ it’s another to know you can do it,’’ he said. ‘We were like a kid in the candy store when we first got here two years ago, but we’re expecting to be here now.’’Renfrow has drawn comparisons to Wes Welker—the former New England Patriots possession receiver—and will likely play in the NFL two years from now after he graduates. Scott tells NFL he’d love if they could send their team’s best cornerback to Renfrow’s pro day. He guarantees Renfrow would win three of five routes against anyone.
But has no interest in declaring for the draft after this season. He is having too much fun. “I like playing golf and hanging out with my friends every day,’’ he said. “Clemson’s a small place. It’s not New York, so I’m just who I am.’’