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As he sat down the third baseline prior to Clemson\u2019s trip to California on May 25, Jack Leggettreflected.
\nHe reflected on how his 2015 team, his final one at Clemson, battled through all the adversity to get back to the NCAA Tournament for the 21st time in his 22 years as the Tigers\u2019 skipper. He reflected on all the good memories he had been a part of at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. He reflected on all the players who came through his program and how they all matured and grew as players, students, ballplayers and more importantly as young men.
\n\u201cI was reflecting on how much I love this place,\u201d Leggett said Friday.
\nLeggett spoke with select members of the media to say thank you to Clemson fans, his wife, his family, the athletic support staff, his current players, his former players, the late Bill Wilhelm, Dwight Rainey, Bill D\u2019Andrea and Terry Don Phillips.
\n\u201cI\u2019m a little sentimental guy sometimes,\u201d Leggett said.
\nIn the eight days since he was fired by athletic director Dan Radakovich, ending a Hall of Fame career that spanned 22 years at Clemson, Leggett says there is a void in his life right now because he has been so invested at Clemson and in his program.
\n\u201cThere is a little bit of disappointment on how it ended,\u201d he said. \u201cThere is a lot of pride in what we have done with a lot of positive feedback. Those emotions are running back and forth. It has been an emotional rollercoaster the last six days. I have been constantly on the phone and have gotten back to all 560 or 570 people. Every single one I have returned with a \u2018Thanks\u2019 and \u2018I love you too,\u2019 whatever it might be. It was important for me to do that.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s been a void to know, \u2018What do you do next?\u2019 Where do you feel that energy gap? Where do you feel that passion gap? That every day work ethic gap, where do you feel that? That is the only question mark in my mind, \u2018How do I figure that out?\u2019\u201d
\nLeggett is starting with a trip out of town. He and his wife, Karen, are headed to anywhere, just to get away and so he can clear his mind. Now 61 years old, Leggett says he still has that fire to coach. He still has that fire to compete, but he isn\u2019t sure what he is going to do when it comes to coaching again.
\nHe did say he has been contacted about some opportunities to continue his coaching career, but he isn\u2019t sure if he will act on any of them at this time. He says he plans to stay in Clemson for the time being and he hopes one day he will be welcomed back because that is the way he has always wanted it to be.
\nThe former Clemson coach said he always envisioned going out at Clemson the same way Coach Wilhelm did, walking down the third base line, tipping his hat to the crowd and just taking it all in.
\n\u201cI wanted it to be that way,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was important for me to make Coach Wilhelm feel special for all he accomplished at Clemson. It was important to make him feel excited about coming back to the game. I went up to the net every time and talked to him. I wanted his family to feel that way because they were invested. And his former players, I respected that there were a lot of great people.
\n\u201cThat was always important to me. That\u2019s how I envisioned this working out when I thought about it was all over. I need some recovery time and we will see where it goes. I always want Clemson to be successful. I always want good things for the university. I always want good things for my players on the team right now that are coming back. I want good things to happen. I will never say anything different than that.
\n\u201cI hope I\u2019m never viewed as an outsider\u2026 It might take a little recovery time for a while, but that\u2019s how I would like to see it.\u201d
\nSo Leggett got in his car and he drove out of town. But before he left, he had one statement.
\n\u201cI\u2019ll be back. I\u2019m not going anywhere,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Clemson, Jack Leggett, Leggett, Baseball, Feature\u00a0<\/p>\n
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