TigerIllustrated.com - 'Rock the John'

October 9, 2009

Ryan Bartow
TigerIllustrated.com Recruiting Analyst

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CLEMSON, S.C. -- Though the first game isn't until November 13, there's only one more week until Clemson 'officially' kicks off its season. And it'll do it in grand fashion again this year with its own version of midnight madness, dubbed as 'Rock the John.'

Clemson fans flowing into town for the next day's football game against Wake Forest will have a chance to get a firsthand preview of the top 25 ranked men's basketball team.

"It's going to be a wild atmosphere," assistant coach Josh Postorino told Tigerillustrated.com earlier this week during the Oliver Purnell golf outing at the Walker Course. "There's going to be things happening for not only the students, but the fans in general. Our players are really looking forward to that. I think they want to see why Littlejohn Coliseum has been ranked by EA Sports as the No. 2 place in the country to come see a game. Plus, it's a really big recruiting weekend for us. It's huge in a lot of areas."

Clemson returns two starters in point guard Demontez Stitt and power forward Trevor Booker. Last season Booker became the first player to lead the ACC in rebounding and field goal percentage since Tim Duncan did it for Wake Forest in the mid 90s.

Purnell's bunch, forecasted to compete for a top half finish in one of the nation's elite leagues and make a third consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament this season, returns almost all of its depth from last season, too.

Plus next Friday night will mark the first public showing of arguably the most touted freshmen class to arrive at Clemson in ages. Five-star signee Milton Jennings, four-star pick-ups Devin Booker and Noel Johnson and three-star guard Donte Hill will make their debut runs in the Orange and White for the event.

"No. 1 is our team. Getting to see the young guys who you've read so much about but you haven't been able to see," noted Michael Morrell, Clemson's Director of Basketball Operations. "I think last year we had 5,000 people. We hope this year we get that thing almost full. Being that it's before a football game I'm really excited about that opportunity."

Just as the coaching staff is welcoming in a talented group, they've also been working around the clock on next year's class and the one beyond. Marcus Thornton, the lone 2010 verbal commit, will be making his official visit to Clemson next weekend.

The 6-foot-7, 215-pound athletic forward from Atlanta (GA) Westlake pledged to the Tigers just under a year ago.

The top target on the senior class board, four-star recruit Jason Morris, will also be in the house on his first official visit. It will mark the third time since mid-summer that the 6-foot-5, 210-pound small forward has been in Tiger Town.

It's a battle between the Tigers and Georgia Tech for the nation's No. 84 overall prospect, according to Rivals.com, that shines at Lakeville (CT) Hotchkiss School. He was last in town on September 5, the night of the football season opener.

And not to be outdone, a pair of five-star recruits will be in Clemson that weekend as well. Greenville - JL Mann superstar Damien Leonard will make the less than half hour trek to Clemson.

Rivals.com regards the 6-foot-4 shooting guard as the nation's No. 3 prospect at his position in 2011 and the No. 14 overall prospect in the country.

Alpharetta (GA) Milton blue-chipper Shannon Scott will also be in the house. The nation's No. 3 point guard and No. 12 overall prospect in 2011 has favored the Tigers since last spring and Purnell & Co. continue to lead for one of their top priorities in the junior class.

"It's going to be a big recruiting weekend," Morrell added. "It's a big, big weekend for us for years to come, building on the success and momentum we've had in the last couple of recruiting classes."

Most of all, the experience will give Clemson's rabid fan base a chance to meet and greet with the players and staff.

"Fans can stay after and sign autographs and hang out with Trevor Booker and see him up close and in person," Morrell concluded. "They are going to do some giveaways and some surprises. Littlejohn is one of the top five places to see a game.

"I think this will be a little more of a personal feel. It's something that we said last year when we started it... we wanted to build upon it. We hope there are 8 to 9,000 people there."

Rock the 'John Itinerary
As of October 5, 2009

7:30 Doors Open; CAVA distributes giveaways; Tiger Band/DJ playing; Highlights/Top 5 Fan Reactions/Announcements/Sponsor Info/Blooper Reel; Aramark Opens

8:00 Event Begins; Short Intro Video and Cheerleaders and Rally Cats Perform Routine;

8:05 J Dew Intro Video

8:07 Top 10 Dunks

8:10 Air Elite Dunk Team

8:17 Official Welcome for J Dew/Announce ticket winners to come down

8:20 Promotion #1-Coca-Cola "Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better"

8:28 Promotion #2-Academy Half Court Shot for $25,000

8:33 Introduction of Women's Basketball Team

8:40 Coach McKinney entrance

8:43 Coach McKinney to address crowd

8:46 Women's Highlight Video

8:46 Women's Basketball Scrimmage

9:00 Promotion #3-Clemson Street Smarts

9:15 Men's Basketball Intro

9:22 Oliver's entrance

9:27 Oliver addresses the crowd

9:31 Men's Highlight Video

9:34 Men Scrimmage

9:54 3 point Contest

9:59 Promotion #4-Win a Car Promotion

10:14 Closing Remarks/T-shirt drop

10:22 Autograph Session Begins

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