Levis Sams was 89 in this video. The World War 2 veteran got to spend the day with his family.
Sams, in a wheelchair, was rolled up and around by an active duty Marine to Memorial Stadium. Clemson ROTC cadets were waiting on full attention as they saluted the veteran.
Levis Sams was drafted before he could go to Clemson. But he did spend many Saturdays going to games before suffering a stroke.
A female cadet planning to go into the service after graduation, approached and held Sams’ hands thanking him for his service.
The freshman wasn’t expecting the veteran to thank her though. Hence the tears.
“That’s a wonderful gift to give to all of us and your country,” Sams said. “I know you’ll be happy you did it in the years to come, and I want you to know it’s a great service, and it’s appreciated by those of us who know. I know it’s been a long, hard road, but it’ll all be worth it. It’ll all be worth it in the end.”
The cadets and Marine escorted Sams with his family onto the Clemson football field. And there, Sams saw his name flashing on the scoreboard.
“It means a great deal to be taken back to a place that was so wonderful for me and in the good part of my life,” Sams said.
Sams also got to rub Howard’s Rock for the very first time.
“When we were out on the field I reached down and I said, ‘How do you like this?’ and he looked back grinning saying, ‘What do you think?’ said Sams’ son, Mike Sams.
Safety features weren’t exactly important when Levis Sams played football in the early forties at Anderson’s Boys High.
The WW2 vet was an offensive lineman on a run-oriented team. He faced rugged competition from players who came back to high school after serving two years in the military.
“That’s why my nose is flat,” Sams said.
Sams also remembered the rocky, knee-jolting surface of the Boys’ High practice field.
“It was the hardest field I ever played on,” he said. “Your knees and elbows were skinned up all the time.”
But wearing a Clemson uniform wasn’t to be when Sams graduated in 1945, Sams instead put on Marine Corps gear. The veteran was drafted in the waning days of World War II.
Sams became a loyal fan, rarely missing a game for more than 50 years. This trip to Clemson Memorial Stadium was special for Sams. And to be surrounded by loved ones made it sweeter.
As for the freshman, she will never forget the moment a veteran turned the tables and thanked her instead.
A very humble man who has seen the horrors of war but still chose love.
What an an amazing man, selfless and brave, like what we saw in this video.
Watch the touching moment in the video below!
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