LETTERS FROM DABO - Part 2

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Dabo Swinney's extraordinary ability to lift a football program is known to everyone who even casually follows the sport.

But what about his gift, equally extraordinary, of lifting the spirits of those who are going through periods of struggle?

These to-date unpublicized gestures -- random acts of Dabo, if you will -- are very much worthy of being documented in a more official, complete form.

So Tigerillustrated.com reached out to a number of people who have shared their own behind-the-scenes stories with us.

ALSO SEE: LETTERS FROM DABO - Part 1

Here is Part 2.

It was the annual Clemson Day at the Statehouse in March of 2016, and Jason Eargle was supposed to be there with his father.

Jesse Eargle (Clemson class of 1972) had retired after serving for more than two decades in the Clemson Extension service. He was now the chair of the State Extension Advancement Council (SEAC), and his son Jason (Clemson class of 2001) had just come aboard as a council member.

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Father was going to make the short drive to Columbia from his home in Orangeburg. Son was going to travel there from Charleston, where he was in grad school pursuing his MBA. They were going to visit with lawmakers and advocate for Clemson and new ideas for improving economic development through agriculture.

Jesse called his son and told him he wasn't going to be able to make it. He was dealing with pain that he thought might be kidney stones, and he was going to get it checked out.

Jason would have to go it alone.

"I knew some of the folks at the Statehouse from being around events my dad brought me to when I was a kid," Jason said. "They were all asking about him. I told them he had kidney stones."

That's what Jason went to bed that night thinking.

The news came the next day: Jesse was diagnosed with Stage 4 bile duct cancer. A large tumor had been discovered, and the prognosis was grim; in most cases of bile duct cancer, by the time symptoms are discovered it's too late.

Jesse would be gone in less than six months. He died that August at the age of 66, leaving behind his wife Beverly and two sons, Jason and Austin.

Jason, now 41, treasures the memories of a father who dedicated his life to serving others. He also treasures a voicemail Dabo Swinney left for his dad less than two months after the cancer was diagnosed.

Jesse was preparing to go through his first rounds of chemotherapy in late April of 2016, making 45-mile trips from Orangeburg to the hospital in Lexington.

Jason was in his final months of Clemson's Entrepreneurship and Innovation MBA program. A friend in the program had ties to the football team, and Jason asked him if he might try to get word to Swinney about his father.

Jesse was with Beverly at the hospital getting prepped for chemo when his phone rang. He didn't answer because he didn't recognize the number from the 864 area code.

Swinney, at the NFL Draft in Chicago with Shaq Lawson and Kevin Dodd, left the following message:

"Hey Jesse. This is Dabo Swinney up here at Clemson. Just giving you a call. I know that you're battling cancer; I heard about your diagnosis. Man I just wanted to call you and encourage you.

"Hey, listen: My father-in-law has pancreatic cancer and, man he's been through his treatments and it's been a year now and he's doing well. So I just wanted to encourage you not to give up hope, and continue to keep a great attitude. And just, man, attack this thing every single day. Because I know that you will.

"And I also just wanted to thank you. I know you've given your whole life to Clemson University. I appreciate all the people you've impacted along the way. But anyway, just take it one day at a time and keep the faith. Stay strong. And just enjoy your time with your family. And just don't give up. That's the biggest thing I'd tell you. And just try to keep a positive attitude as you battle this. But sorry I missed you. And God bless you. Always. Take care."

----- Click HERE to listen to Dabo Swinney's voicemail.

Jason, now: "I hated that he didn't get to talk to him live and it was just a voicemail. But it was nonetheless something that lifted his spirits up. And it's something that’s been valuable to my family. I go back to it and listen for inspiration. It gave us something that was a legacy, a memory to last.

"I would run through a brick wall for Dabo."

Jason ended up continuing his father's legacy in state agriculture by working to introduce an against-the-grain idea: An industrial hemp pilot program designed to rejuvenate farming communities in South Carolina.

On that March 2016 day in Columbia when his father thought he had kidney stones, Jason began meeting with others to put the wheels in motion for the pilot program.

Jason spent considerable time over the next year meeting with lawmakers, regulatory bodies and stakeholders to try to clear up misconceptions about hemp, which has a history of industrial applications such as textiles and building materials. He envisions it becoming a stable, sustainable crop for the Palmetto State.

Once lawmakers were enlightened on the economic-development possibilities of industrial hemp, the bill passed 97-0 in the House and 35-1 in the Senate in May of 2017.

Thus the hemp pilot program began, allowing 20 farmers in the state to each grow 20 acres of hemp with an emphasis on research. Clemson legend Danny Ford is one of those farmers. At present there is no limit on the number of farmers in the state who can grow hemp for industrial purposes, provided they fulfill application requirements.

"The open-mindedness of the legislators turned it around," Jason said. "If you just try to get a plant legalized that has a stigma around it, it's going to fall on deaf ears. Using the economic-development messaging was the key."

When the 2016 Clemson team advanced to the playoff and dismantled Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl to secure a rematch with Alabama, Jason and his brother made plans to be in Tampa.

A year earlier, they were with their father in Glendale when Clemson fell short against the Crimson Tide in the national championship. At the time, no one had any idea their father was sick. No clue of the devastating news that would come a month-and-a-half later. Their father passed away 13 days before Clemson began the season with a narrow win at Auburn.

Five days before the 2016 national championship, Jesse was posthumously inducted into Clemson's Frank Lever County Extension Agent Hall of Fame for his lifetime of service as a front-line county agent whose work made an important economic impact on his community.

Before leaving for Tampa, Jason and Austin packed two of their father's hats and were wearing them when Deshaun Watson found Hunter Renfrow for the game-winning touchdown on that cold night at Raymond James Stadium.

Weeks later came another Clemson Day at the Statehouse. Jason managed to get his brother in to watch Swinney give a stirring address to lawmakers about the obstacles that can be overcome when a team commits to working together.

"His speech that day was magical," Jason said. "He kind of took them to school a little bit."

After it was over, Jason and Austin pulled Swinney aside on the Statehouse steps and asked for a photo.

Jason brought up the voicemail and told Swinney how much his father and the entire family appreciated it. Swinney nodded and said he was glad he could provide some comfort.

"Thank you for being a Tiger," Swinney told them. "Thank your father for being a Tiger."

A year later, Jason Eargle wasn't alone anymore.

"It was just so awesome that Dabo did that, taking time during a busy time for him at the draft to call my dad," he said. "Those are just the things he does. It creates a deep loyalty to him as a coach and as a person.

"And as a good leader of men, which my dad always was."

We will release another story in part III of this special series tomorrow.

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