Army Vet Daniel Rodriguez Makes Clemson Football Roster

Daniel Rodriguez two weeks ago daniel rodriguez's story was featured on the front page of usa today a u.s army veteran winner of the purple heart and bronze star medal with valor attempting to fulfill a lifelong dream of playing college football well tuesday the 24 year old receiver learned his dream had come true we now welcome in the newest member of the clemson tigers daniel rodriguez now daniel you received the text yesterday that you made the roster what was that like uh yeah when i mean when i received a text message it was kind of like you know that bird and that stress had been lifted off my shoulders and uh i was ecstatic you know i actually went into the stairwell here in the west end zone where nobody was around just kind of yelled i mean and i went to the weight room and just worked out so it's kind of like you know just relieved some excitement and you know i couldn't sleep last night just all day it's been really really really exciting and just fortunate and grateful to everybody that you know has done what they've done to get me here so it's an awesome feeling now you have a clemson locker with your name on it what was it like to see rodriguez up there for the first time i mean it made me smile you know just from ear to ear um it's just one of those moments where you walk in and kind of see it and it kind of officializes you being a part of the team you know you have your footprint now in clemson history so it's you know that's great that's just an awesome feeling and i can't wait to get to work and you know earn my spot and earn my keys how does How does adversity translate onto the field the adversity you faced serving in iraq and afghanistan translate onto the field i think you know as far as transitioning adversity from one to another um it helps out significantly for one i always put into perspective that it's not as bad as it ever was so no matter how hard i get hit um it's not going to be as hard as the grenade i took the leg you know no matter how stressed i am how tired i am it's not going to compare to an 18-hour firefight no matter how worried i am about the game situation it's not life or death so that almost simplifies the game in a way which is which to me makes it more enjoyable and at that point it makes it easier for me to concentrate and focus on the game as the game you know how is How the military helped him train for this season the training you endured and the military helped you as you train for this upcoming season um as far as training-wise goes you know i kind of have a mindset surviving what i survived you know you never think that you're gonna have to train for a situation like that worst case scenario if you will so now when i train um i train so hard because i put myself in the worst case scenario i don't ever want there to be a reason why i'm out of breath i don't want to look back and say man i didn't go as hard as i could or i should have ran one more stadium stair i should have ran you know one more hill that's why i train as hard as i do because i've been in the situation where i should have trained more we weren't ready we weren't prepared you know we won but it was through a lot of fighting and through a lot of loss on the american casualty side so now when i train and convert that into football relation i give everything i have in the weight room i give everything i have when i'm running because i know when it comes down to game day i'm going to want to be able to say i train my ass off to get there where i'm at and put forth what i have Expectations for this season daniel it's been six years since you played on the gridiron what are your expectations for this season uh just kind of be one of those dynamic players that they can throw in on kickoff wherever they need me and that's kind of my goal just to be like a utility player if you i want to sell myself as utility like i have the endurance stamina you know the mindset to learn multiple offense you know whatever it is you know holding field goals running down anything they need me to do i want to be able to do that and you know my goal is just to get on the field on a consistent basis on special teams and you know rotate in as a receiver wherever i can clemson's home opener ball state the Howards Rock tradition of touching howard's rock running down the hill what do you think the first time is going to be like uh you know i kind of haven't really thought too much about it but you know i think it's just going to be one of those those times in my life that i remember like hearing the stands i i've never been to a clemson game i i don't know how loud it gets you know i see the pictures and i and i hear through the words of teammates but until you really see it in color and envision and be a part of it in its natural state you're not going to be able to soak it all up in so you know being on top of the hill and being able to run down the first time i think it's just going to be one of those triumphant moments in my life where i feel like i've accomplished so much um through what i've gone through to get here so it's just gonna be incredible and and something that i'm gonna cherish for the rest of my life thanks daniel it's an honor meeting you and we all appreciate your duty over there ah thank you so much you