Clemson’s Sophomore RB Travis Etienne to Receive 2018 Blanchard-Rogers Trophy a/k/a “South Carolina’s Heisman”
Greenville, SC: The South Carolina Football Hall of Fame (SCFHOF) is proud to name Clemson University’s Travis Etienne as the recipient of the 2018 Blanchard-Rogers Trophy presented by Hale’s Jewelers.
Born and raised in Jennings, Louisiana, Etienne came to South Carolina to attend Clemson University as the last commitment in the 2017 recruiting class. This past fall, the sophomore had a record-breaking season that saw him in consideration for most explosive players in the country. He ran for a school-record 1,658 yards on 204 carries with a school-record 24 rushing touchdowns. He also added two receiving touchdowns, tying the ACC record for total touchdowns in a season with 26.
Etienne’s accomplishments on the field earned him ACC Player of the Year, ACC Offensive Player of the Year, and first team All-ACC honors. Nationally he was a Doak Walker Award Finalist, Maxwell Award Semifinalist, and named to numerous first and second All-American teams. While averaging an astounding 8.12 yards per carry, he posted eight 100-plus-yard games including a 203-yard, three-touchdown day against Syracuse. The three-touchdown day against Syracuse was one of four games in which he recorded at least three total touchdowns during the season, including the three total touchdowns he scored against Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship to lead the Tigers to a 44-16 win and a 15-0 undefeated season. The rising junior running back will be considered a preseason Heisman candidate going into the 2019 campaign.
The Blanchard-Rogers Trophy presented by Hale’s Jewelers is awarded to South Carolina’s most outstanding collegiate player of the year (eligibility includes all college football players playing in the state as well as those natives playing outside the state). The honor will be accepted by Etienne at the sold-out 2019 Enshrinement Ceremony on April 23, 2019 at the Hilton Greenville. In April 2018, Rock Hill native and current Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph received the prestigious trophy from Lucian Lee of Hale’s Jewelers. The Blanchard-Rogers Trophy is hand crafted by local Greenville artist Ryan Calloway of Creative Iron Works. This will be the sixth consecutive year the organization has honored a collegiate player of the year, the last three years as the Blanchard-Rogers Trophy.
