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Spiller Fact: Had an 83-yard touchdown run against #21 Auburn in 2007 Chick-fil-A Bowl, the longest play from scrimmage in Clemson bowl history.
Years Lettered: 2006,07
Years Starter: 2007
Bowl Participation: Reserve running back in the 2006 Music City Bowl against Kentucky; reserve running back in the 2007 Chick-fil-A Bowl against #21 Auburn.
Fall 2008 Depth Chart Position: Co-first-team running back
Overview: One half of Clemson's "thunder & lightning" duo; Spiller and Davis are main reasons Clemson is rated as having the best backfield in the nation by Athlon and Lindy's in the preseason...one of the most exciting players in college football...All-American in track, as he uses that speed to his benefit on the gridiron...has played just two years, but he is already seventh in school history in all-purpose yards (3,138); he is on pace to break Derrick Hamilton's career record (4,839) and could get there in 2008...22nd in career rushing (1,706) at Clemson; he has averaged 6.23 yards per carry, the best mark in school history for a player with 250 carries...ninth in career kickoff return yards (781) at Clemson and seventh among active ACC players...third in career rushing yards among active ACC players...third in rushing touchdowns among active ACC players (13)...10th among active ACC players in career punt return yards (170)...named to the academic honor roll in both semesters in 2007-08...#3 all-purpose player in the nation by Lindy's...#4 player in the ACC by Lindy's...#9 running back and #5 kick returner in the nation by Phil Steele...first-team All-ACC as a kick returner/athlete by Athlon and Lindy's...Clemson was 7-1 in 2007 when he averaged at least 5.0 yards per rush and 12-3 in his career...Clemson is 6-2 in the last two years when he rushes for at least 100 yards...had at least one catch in 22 of his 26 career games...only started five games in 2007, but he played 508 snaps (39 per game)...has 53 career receptions for 481 yards, among the top-five reception totals in school history for a running back...has scored 19 career touchdowns, including 13 rushing, four receiving, and two on kickoff returns...has 10 touchdown plays of at least 50 yards in his career, a school record; six of those came in 2006 as a freshman...native of Florida who is one of the most-popular student-athletes at Clemson...All-American on Clemson's track team...member of the All-American 4x100m relay team in 2007...All-American in track in the indoor season when he finished 10th in the nation in the 60m...averaged 7.3 yards per carry as a freshman in 2006, the best by an ACC player since Warrick Dunn had a 7.5-yard average at Florida State in 1995; Spiller wears #28 in honor of Dunn, who he idolized as a youth...has played N.C. State twice and has two 100-yard rushing games against the Wolfpack...first-team Parade and USA Today All-American in high school.
2007: Honorable Mention All-ACC pick as a kick returner by AP/ACSMA...second-team All-ACC kick returner by Rivals.com...led the Tigers and was fourth in the ACC in all-purpose yards (132.5)...second in the ACC and 14th in the nation in kickoff returns (28.8)...only ACC player with two kickoff returns for touchdowns; he is just the second Tiger to do it in one year, joining Doug Thomas (1990)...had the kickoff returns for touchdown in consecutive games against Duke and Wake Forest, the first Tiger in history to return kickoffs for scores in consecutive games...second in the ACC in kickoff returns and eighth in punt returns (8.6); he was one of four players in the top 10 in the ACC in both return areas...second-leading rusher on the team with 768 yards...averaged 5.3 yards per rush...had 25 carries of 10 yards or more, second-most on the team...touched the ball 214 times on returns, receptions, and rushes, averaging 16.5 touches per game...third-leading receiver with 34 catches...had three 100-yard rushing games, including 114 yards on 21 carries at N.C. State and 106 yards on 17 carries at Maryland; had added eight carries for 112 yards and one touchdown in the Chick-fil-A Bowl against #21 Auburn...had a stronger second half of the season when he averaged at least 5.0 yards per carry in five of the last six regular-season games; Clemson was 5-0 in those contests...had just 38 rushing yards against Louisiana-Monroe, but he had 87 receiving yards on four catches...had 1,723 all-purpose yards, fourth-most in school history...earned a helmet sticker from ESPN for his 114 yards on 21 carries and three catches for 34 yards at N.C. State; he also had 41 kickoff return yards, so he had 189 all-purpose yards...in the last seven games, he had 83 carries for 564 yards, a 6.1-yard average...had a 68-yard touchdown reception against Louisiana-Monroe and 11-yard touchdown reception at N.C. State...had 88 yards on 16 carries along with four receptions at South Carolina...had 112 rushing yards, and eight-yard punt return, and 103 yards on kickoff returns, as he totaled 218 all-purpose yards against #21 Auburn...only Tiger in history with a 100-yard kickoff return game and 100-yard rushing performance in the same game...had an 83-yard touchdown run against #21 Auburn, the longest rush in the history of the Peach/Chick-fil-A Bowl and the longest play in school history in a bowl game.
2006: Led the team and was second in the ACC in 100-yard rushing games (5); he set a Clemson freshman record...led ACC freshmen in rushing yards per game...averaged 7.3 yards per rush, the best by any ACC player since Warrick Dunn had a 7.48-yard average in 1995; it was also the fourth-best figure in the nation and fourth-best in ACC history...second in the ACC in all-purpose yards per game (108.8)...52nd in the nation in rushing yards per game (72.2) and 48th in all-purpose yards per game...tied for third in the ACC in total touchdowns (12) and tied for seventh in scoring (6.0)...finished the regular season strong with two 150-yard rushing games; he had 154 yards against N.C. State and 155 against South Carolina...first Tiger running back to gain at least 150 rushing yards in consecutive games since Terry Allen (1988); his performance against the Gamecocks included an 80-yard run, the longest by a Tiger in 13 years...had an 82-yard reception at Boston College, the fourth-longest catch in Tiger history and the longest by a running back in school history...had 938 rushing yards, third-most in a season by a Tiger freshman...established Clemson freshman records for all-purpose yards (1,415) and touchdowns...fourth in the ACC in rushing yards per game and eighth in scoring...three-time ACC Rookie-of-the-Week; he was named for his performances against North Carolina, Wake Forest, and #13 Georgia Tech...his 938 rushing yards were eight-best in ACC history among freshmen...his 10 rushing touchdowns tied for fourth in ACC history by a freshman...second in the ACC in 100-yard rushing games (5)...started the season-opener at running back against Florida Atlantic, just the eighth freshman running back to start an opener since 1953...named offensive player-of-the-game four times by the coaches, all during the last seven games...had 116 rushing yards against #13 Georgia Tech; he teamed with James Davis to become the first 200/100-yard rushing combo in the same game in Tiger history...totaled 19 catches for 210 yards...had a 52-yard run for a touchdown and a 50-yard reception for a score against #13 Georgia Tech, the first Tiger in history with one of each of 50 yards or more in the same game...had six touchdowns of 50 yards or more, most in Clemson history in a season...had at least one reception in 10 games; he had streak of eight in a row at one point...had just 103 rushing yards in his first four games, but had 104 carries for 835 yards in his last nine games; that was 8.0 yards per carry and 93 yards per game over the last nine games.
Track (2007-08): Outdoor - Returned to track after practicing with the football team during the spring...ran a 10.59 in the 100m prelims at the ACC Championships and finished fourth at the league meet in Atlanta, GA...posted a regional-qualifying time of 10.33 in the 100m at the Orange & Purple Classic...ran the third leg with the Tigers' 4x100m relay team that ran a season-best 39.23...his best time in the 200m was 20.96 at the East Region Championships...placed sixth in the 100m and seventh in the 200m at regionals; he recorded his top career times in both, including a 10.29 in the 100m prelims...Indoor - Earned All-America honors in the 60m as the 10th-place finisher and eighth-best American; he ran a 6.67 in the prelims...qualified for the NCAA Championships automatically with the second-best time (6.58) in the nation; he recorded the time in a win at the Carolina Classic in Chapel Hill, NC in February; that time is fifth-best in school history, behind four current or former All-Americans...earned his first All-ACC certificate in the 60m after finishing runner-up to teammate Travis Padgett at the league meet; he posted a 6.70 in the final...finished fifth in the 200m (22.04) at the ACC meet.
Track (2006-07): Outdoor - Qualified for the NCAA Championships as a member of the 4x100m relay team...helped the squad to a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Championships and earned his first All-America certificate; he ran anchor leg...earned his first-ever All-ACC certificate after placing third in the 100m...helped the 4x100m relay team to a runner-up finish and the fourth-best time in the nation (39.48) at the conference meet...regional qualifier multiple times in the 100m; his top time was 10.41 at the Clemson Invitational...Indoor - Scored at the ACC meet in the 60m (6.74); it was an NCAA provisional qualifying mark.
Before Clemson: Had 541 carries for 5,511 yards (10.2 average) in his career at Union County High School...First-Team USA Today All-American, the first running back to come to Clemson with that honor since 1989 (Rudy Harris)...First-Team Parade All-American; also the first Parade All-America running back to come to Clemson since Harris...#8 prospect in the nation by Rivals.com, including the #1 all-purpose running back; also the #1 player in Florida...#43 player and #6 running back in the nation by CollegeFootballNews.com...#12 prospect in the nation by Tom Lemming...#16 prospect in the nation by Scout.com and #4 running back...#23 prospect and #4 running back in the nation by SuperPrep...#47 prospect in the nation by ESPN.com...EA Sports Second-Team All-American...first-team All-South by Countdown to Signing Day...U.S. Army All-American; he played in the U.S. Army All-Star game...selected for the California-Florida High School All-Star game...had 176 carries for 1,840 yards (10.5 average) as a senior; also had 30 rushing touchdowns and one on a kickoff return; added 15 catches for 249 yards...scored 93 touchdowns in his career, including 85 rushing, three receiving, three on kickoff returns, and two on punt returns...three-time all-state pick...one of the top track athletes in Florida...state 100m (10.42) and 200m champion...won the 100m at the Golden West Meet, a national meet held in June, 2006 in California; also finished second in the 200m...played shooting guard on the hardwood...coached by Buddy Nobles...selected Clemson over Florida, Florida State, Miami (FL), and Southern California...born Aug. 5, 1987...majoring in sociology.
