FIELD OF DREAMS SUPERVISOR OF ATHLETIC GROUNDS MIKE ECHOLS IS A STAPLE AT CLEMSON SPORTING EVENTS, BUT HE DOES MOST OF HIS WORK ON DAYS THE TIGERS DON’T TAKE THE FIELD.
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n gameday, Clemson fans arrive filled with the anticipation of finally seeing their Tigers play. From the gridiron to the soccer pitch and the baseball diamond, there is no better feeling for a Tiger fan than seeing the field for the first time in months on opening day of the regular season. For supervisor of athletic grounds Mike Echols and his staff, keeping Clemson’s athletic fields in top condition is their ultimate goal. A Charlottesville, Va., native and former student-athlete at Clemson, Echols played golf for the Tigers from 1981-83 under former head coach Bobby Robinson and was a teammate of current head coach Larry Penley, who also became an assistant coach upon graduating. Golf was Echols’ first love, and it was through the game that he found a different way to give back to the game he loved so much. Echols graduated with a degree in agronomy with an emphasis in turfgrass management. After working in small business for a landscape maintenance firm and owning a landscape contracting firm for a num-
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CLEMSONTIGERS.COM • @CLEMSONFB
BY COLBY LANHAM
ber of years, Clemson came calling with a job opening for field management, and it was an opportunity that Echols did not let slip away.
“Gary Wade, who works for facilities at Clemson, indicated to me that Mr. Robinson had an opening here and asked if I’d like to apply. I did, and here
I sit today, where I’ve been working for 14 seasons.” For those 14 seasons, Echols and his staff continue to maintain 80 acres of