“It’s Not a Problem. It’s an Opportunity”: Mark Packer Reflects on a Lifetime in Sports

It was one of those classic Death Valley nights — lights flashing, the Marching Band from Tigerland spelling out TIGERS, but this time with brilliant LEDs, and the home crowd roaring as the orange and white faved off with the garnet and gold. But this time, one of Clemson’s most recognizable voices wasn’t behind a microphone. He was on the field — smiling, waving, and, yes, dotting the I.

Mark Packer — the longtime radio and television host known for Primetime with the Packman, Off Campus, Packer and Durham, and ACC PM — returned to his alma mater to be honored during the Clemson–Florida State game. And for a man who spent 30 years covering the sport from the booth, it was a rare opportunity to just be a fan.

“I was beyond honored when they asked me back in June or July,” Packer said. “I thought they had screwed up. I said, ‘No, you want me to do what?’ They said, ‘No, Pack, we want you to dot the I.’”

For Packer, a 1985 Clemson graduate with two daughters who also earned their degrees in Tiger Town, the moment was deeply personal.

“Now that I’ve retired, I can go to games now and be a fan,” he said. “I’ve been doing that stuff for 30 years where you’re working. Even on the Southern Fried Football Tour, which I did for like 13 years, you’re still working. Now, I can just go with family and friends and tailgate and all that stuff and be back on that campus. I love the place so much.”

The band’s dazzling LED performance — a surprise Packer was sworn to secrecy about — capped a night that he called “a thrill of a lifetime.”

“It wasn’t so much me being honored,” he said. “It’s just an honor to be a part of a tradition that’s one of the reasons I love Clemson.”

Fair on Air, Fan at Heart

While Packer’s Clemson roots run deep, his on-air career was built on objectivity — an approach he says was intentional from the start.

“I always thought about the person watching or listening to a show,” Packer said. “Regardless of what team or school or conference they root for, they want a fair shot. It doesn’t mean you’re right all the time, but if you’re fair in judgment, that’s what people respect.”

Even now, he admits, he’d be calling Clemson’s current struggles exactly as he sees them.

“If I was still doing stuff this year on the air, you’d have to come clean with Clemson football,” he said. “To be four and five — nobody in their right mind would have guessed that Clemson would be fighting for a bowl bid heading into the last couple of weeks.”

Packer’s perspective reflects decades of watching college football’s unpredictable cycles. He pointed out one of his favorite annual stats:

“It’s been 22 of the last 23 years that somebody in the AP preseason top 10 ends up the season unranked,” he said with a laugh. “It happens every year. Nobody is immune to having a tough year.”

“It’s Not a Problem. It’s an Opportunity.”

That mindset, turning adversity into growth, has become something of a personal motto for Packer. When asked what this season could mean for Dabo Swinney and the Clemson program, his answer was equal parts perspective and encouragement.

“It’s not just a sports thing. It’s a life thing,” Packer said. “One of the things people who’ve had unbelievable success almost always talk about is not what made them great — it’s where they failed and learned and then adapted.”

He sees this moment as a chance for Swinney and Clemson to evolve again.

“Dabo’s got a front-row seat to go back now and say, ‘Okay, this one didn’t work. So how do I fix it?’ If you stay status quo and the results are the same, then that would be a problem. But now, you’ve got an opportunity.”

To illustrate his point, Packer even turned to history.

“I went back and looked at some of the greatest coaches in the history of college football — Bobby Bowden, Joe Paterno, Barry Switzer, Urban Meyer, Nick Saban — and you’ll find there’s a kind of consistent six- to eight-year gap sometimes between national titles. Barry Switzer won it in ’75 and didn’t win the next one until 1985. So Clemson’s in that same window. The game’s changed. The world’s changed. You gotta change with it.”

On Friends, Legacy, and Life Beyond the Mic

Part of what made the weekend so meaningful was sharing it with people who’ve been central to Packer’s Clemson journey, especially longtime sports information director Tim Bourret, who was officially inducted into the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame the same weekend.

“Tim and I used to be roommates,” Packer said. “He is just a salt-of-the-earth great person. Nobody, in my opinion, has done a better job for an institution than what Tim Bourret has done for Clemson.”

As for life after broadcasting, Packer says retirement has been busy — even if his schedule is more flexible than ever.

“My life’s been kind of upside down a little bit,” he admitted. “We’re going through the estate process after losing my parents, but there are a lot of things I want to do. I’m in the process of starting to write a book. I’ve got a ton of stories to tell.”

He’s also planning a major international trip in January, several speaking engagements, and possibly even teaching.

“I kind of feel like, hey, I got a whole new world in front of me,” he said. “And what I did Saturday night in Clemson is something I’ve not really been able to do for 30-some-odd years — just go to a ballgame, put your feet up, chill out, eat some ribs, drink some bourbon, tell some stories. That’s what life’s all about.”

“There’s Nothing but Answers to the Puzzle”

When the conversation turned to the broader landscape of college football — from Tony Elliott’s progress at Virginia to the 12-team College Football Playoff — Packer’s trademark candor came through.

“Every time I hear people go, ‘Oh, it’s a lousy weekend of games coming up,’ wrong answer,” he said. “There’s nothing but answers to the puzzle for the next four or five weeks.”

And as for the new playoff format? He’s not entirely sold.

“Every time you think you got it solved, I've got news for you: here comes the curveball,” he said, laughing. “And that’s why we love this stuff so much.”

Full Circle

Mark Packer has spent a lifetime covering college football — and through it all, Clemson has remained at the center of his story. Saturday night in Death Valley wasn’t about a media career, a television gig, or a headline. It was about a man coming home.

“It was just such a cool experience being a fan,” Packer said. “The energy level, the place filled up, ready to rock and roll. It was a thrill of a lifetime.”