Senior Leader Tristan Leigh Soaks In First Death Valley Home Opener

When Tristan Leigh runs down the hill Saturday night under the lights of Death Valley, it will be a first — and a last. A first home opener in Clemson’s iconic stadium, and the start of his final campaign as a senior leader anchoring the Tigers’ offensive line.

Leigh, Clemson’s veteran left tackle, has started plenty of games in his career. He’s battled in ACC road environments and squared off against some of the nation’s toughest defensive fronts. But this weekend’s clash with No. 9 LSU marks his first chance to begin a season in front of the home crowd — a night-game showcase at Memorial Stadium against a top-10 opponent.

“Yeah, I'm very excited. Any chance you get to play in that stadium in front of the best fans in the nation, it's great. It's a blessing that I wouldn't trade anything in the world for. I'm really excited, being a senior, the home opener playing a great opponent. We've been going against our own guys every day. I think we're all excited to put it together and put it out on the field.”

After undergoing ankle surgery late last season, Leigh worked tirelessly in the offseason to get back to full strength. Asked if he felt limited, he was direct: “Honestly, I feel great. I'm ready to go, honestly.” Looking back at 2024, he added, “it wasn't like a mobility thing… I don't think it affected my mobility.”

The offensive line’s continuity is a central theme for Leigh as Clemson turns the page to 2025.

“With our experience, that helps a lot. With the guy next to you, you know what you're getting from him and even the guys on the other side, like, Blake [Miller]. We’ve played a lot of ball together. I do believe we get confidence from that. I wouldn't say – it's the same mission every year. Every game is the biggest game of the year and [winning] the opener is one of our goals. So, just trying to hit the first goal. I think we do have confidence as a unit with our experience.”

That preparation mindset shows up daily on the practice fields. “We don't have preseason games, but I feel like we try to show up to practice with the mindset like it's a game rep. It's a blessing to play at Clemson. You get to go against the guys like T.J. Parker, Will Heldt, Peter Woods, DeMonte [Capehart] all them boys. You get out there, and if you have wrong footwork and wrong hands, you're going to find out immediately because those guys are great, and they play at a high level. They have a game rep mentality. So I think if you practice the right way, it is preseason every day.”

Leigh’s leadership extends beyond assignments and technique. He’s intentional about mentoring young linemen and embracing newcomers. Speaking about transfers, he said, “The day they stepped on here, we got better, even character-wise.”

As for the week-of buzz before a top-10 showdown, Leigh captured it simply: “You wake up for game week, everybody wakes up with a little of pep in their step. I'm really just excited to go play with my brothers and lay it out there.”

On Saturday night, as the crowd of more than 80,000 roars in unison, Leigh will finally get his first taste of a Death Valley home opener — one more chance to etch his name into Clemson’s proud tradition, and one last ride to set the tone for a season with championship aspirations.