Harvey White, former Clemson QB who led Tigers to ACC titles in 1958 and ’59, dies at 83
CLEMSON, S.C. Former Clemson quarterback Harvey White, who led the Tigers to Atlantic Coast Conference championships in 1958 and 1959, has died. He was 83.
The Blyth Funeral Home of Greenwood, South Carolina, said White died on Saturday. No cause of death was given. The school also announced White’s death.
White was the starting quarterback for the Tigers under coach Frank Howard from 1957 to 1959. The team had a 24-8 record in White’s starts and played in the Sugar Bowl in 1958 and the Bluebonnet Bowl in 1959.
Clemson finished nationally ranked twice with White as quarterback, 12th in the Associated Press poll in 1957 and 11th in 1959.
White was named first-team All-ACC in 1957 when he threw for 841 yards and 11 touchdowns with three interceptions. He was the first Clemson quarterback to be named first-team All-ACC and the only sophomore Clemson QB to be named first-team All-ACC until Tajh Boyd in 2011.
White’s passing efficiency mark of 154.6 in 1957 was a season record for a Clemson quarterback given a minimum of 90 attempts until Boyd broke the mark in 2012
On a THURSDAY night in September, Nick Saban sat in front of a crowd of fans with a headset on, bracing himself for a question. The Crimson Tide were coming off a loss to Texas, their first home nonconference loss since Saban’s first season in Tuscaloosa way back in 2007.
Even worse, the Longhorns manhandled Alabama up front, pressuring Jalen Milroe on 49% of his 39 dropbacks and sacking him five times. Alabama averaged just 3.1 yards per carry.
Saban knew what was coming. Here was Peewee from Grand Bay, always the first caller on “Hey Coach & The Nick Saban Show,” the weekly call-in radio program. Peewee had a specific interest in the offensive line, so much so that he was sometimes called the “line coach emeritus” by Saban.
But before Peewee could even ask a question, Saban went on the offensive.
“Well, Peewee, I’ve been wanting to talk to you all week, man. I mean, we gotta firm up the pocket,” Saban says, gesticulating like he was talking to his team. “We’re setting it too soft. We’re getting pushed back in the middle. Aight, everybody thinks we can’t hold up against the blitz, but they’re sacking us with a four-man rush and one three-man rush. Only one sack came off of the pressure. So I wanted to ask you: What the hell’s going on?”
