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Being a Clemson graduate and the governor of South Carolina makes cajoling Gamecock constituents the ultimate sports bi-partisanship test with the Tigers riding high.
Sometimes Gov. Nikki Haley fails, she just can't help herself.
The 1994 Clemson graduate can't conceal her joy over the undefeated season her alma mater's having this fall. Whenever she posts congratulations to the sixth-ranked Tigers after wins on her Facebook page, ''those Gamecock fans just tear me up.''
But she's getting better.
Haley, 39, said Friday during an interview with The Associated Press that she's softened up messages to wish all Palmetto State football teams well. That doesn't mean she's not thrilled about Clemson's 8-0 start.
''There are few things we love more in the Haley family than Clemson football,'' said the first-term Republican, who talks and texts regularly with Tigers coach Dabo Swinney.
The very personable Haley sends Swinney and the team, ''Good luck'' messages before each game and ''Good job. Keep it up'' sentiments after wins.
No. 6 Clemson puts its perfect season on the line at Georgia Tech on Saturday night.
Haley won't be able to watch, she has a speech to give in Greenville. But like any true fan, she has a plan. The governor will have her security detail monitor the game and keep her updated on what's going on in Atlanta.
Haley usually gets her updates in person.
She, husband Michael, 13-year-old daughter Rena and 10-year-old son Nalin attend most games at Clemson's Death Valley in the Governor's Box, which Haley said is used as much for economic development purposes as for watching Clemson touchdowns.
Her ties to Clemson are strong.
During her first weekend as a student at Clemson in 1989 she met her husband Michael, then a student at Anderson University. The two got engaged on the botanical gardens on campus. She earned an accounting degree there in 1994.
''I was a five-year girl,'' Haley quips.
She was instantly hooked on Clemson football, although it was a changing time for the program. The school had severed ties with national championship coach Danny Ford because of NCAA problems and Ken Hatfield was brought in.
''It felt like intermission,'' Haley said of those early 1990s teams.
And she ran for office last year, Haley heard plenty of fans on each side of the state's biggest sports rivalry weighing in on Swinney's tenure. The Tigers were in midst of going 6-7, their first losing season in 12 years.
But Haley saw a leader who cared about the school and the players and wanted him to know she was behind him, calling Swinney this past off season.
He recalled the message from the governor.
''That kind of caught me off guard,'' Swinney said. ''But she wanted to offer support and tell me to hang in there. It really meant a lot.''
Haley said the team needed a coach that felt the true spirit of Clemson and believes that Swinney fits that mold. She enjoys Swinney's sideline antics and gestures during games.
''I think Clemson fans spend as much time watching coach Dabo as they do the game,'' she said. ''We want to see what he does.''
Now, Clemson fans can spot Haley on the sidelines, too.
Swinney said the team has put a picture of the governor on one of the pre-snap playcards the offense uses for signal calls. Haley's image first flashed during the Tigers 56-45 victory at Maryland. Clemson trailed by 18 points in the second half before rallying.
''I'd like to think my picture was the winning play,'' Haley said.
Then again, she jokes about taking credit for the whole season. ''Well, this is my first year as governor,'' Haley said, laughing.
Swinney said he has enjoyed getting to know Haley, even if he didn't vote for her last fall. In fact, the coach said he missed Election Day entirely as he tried to keep Clemson afloat last year.
''I didn't realize it was voting day until somebody asked me about it,'' he said.
Haley didn't mind the snub, although she wasn't as forgiving when she found out the picture on the other side of her playcard is that of First Lady Michelle Obama.
''We don't talk about that,'' Haley said.
Seems politics and sports are similar for the governor when it comes to taking sides.
