C.J. Spiller gets emotional ahead of Saturday's CFB Hall of Fame honor

On what went through his mind when he found out he was going to be inducted into the College Hall of Fame:

"Still trying to wrap my mind around it. "I truly don't think-- it's really not gonna hit me until December 7. It truly is an honor to be with so many great players and coaches, but I really haven't had too much downtime to think about the magnitude of it, being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. It truly is an honor for me, not just for me, but for this university, for our fans, for my family, all my supporters that's been with me since day one. So it's gonna be a remarkable night. I'm looking forward to it."

On whether he remembered his first practice and what it felt like: 

"Yeah, I was nervous. You're always anxious because you come in as a highly recruited guy, people want to know that you can do it on this level. The main thing for me was just going out there just being myself. It was my first time being away from home in a long time. So, all those emotions was piling in, but once I stepped on the practice field, I mean to me is it's all about football.

"All the outside stuff, that stuff don't even phase me. I don't even worry about that stuff. My focus was on how can I get better. How can I get better as a player? How can I help my team win? But at first, it was all about gaining the respect of your teammates, because that's what you have to do as a freshman. They don't care if you was a one-star or five-star. It's all about gaining their respect and I had the right perspective on that."

On why he never transferred from Clemson even when he may have considered it:

Well, I mean, you referenced those times, I was thinking about leaving, and I always tell people those were emotional times for me. And one advice, I've always been given was that you never want to make an emotional decision. And those were some of those times that I was going through, I was going to make an emotional decision.

On why he decided to stay instead of leaving early for the NFL: 

"You're talking about a life changing event for not only for yourself but for your family. The biggest thing for me was just having conversations with my grandmother - when she was a custodian - going to help her in high school, and she always used to just tell me that education was the most important thing that I can ever have in my life."

On the impact his grandmother had on his football career:

"She was my biggest fan. She's the one that [ my grandma] got me started with football. And she'll be right there with a lawn chair in the stands. She was my biggest fan and my biggest critic, I guess you can say, because she would let me know right after the game what I did wrong from a body language standpoint, from a plan standpoint, from the way I controlled my tongue. I wish she was here physically to share this moment with me. But I know she'll be smiling down happy and just proud, just proud."