Former Clemson standout Hunter Renfrow is building a strong connection with Panthers rookie Xavier Legette, despite their roots in one of college football’s fiercest rivalries.
Former Clemson standout Hunter Renfrow is building a strong connection with Panthers rookie Xavier Legette, despite their roots in one of college football’s fiercest rivalries.
For years, Hunter Renfrow was a thorn in the side of South Carolina fans, a symbol of Clemson’s dominance in one of college football’s most heated rivalries. But now, the former Tigers receiver is teaming up with a Gamecock—and the bond is already forming.
After a year away from the NFL to recover from ulcerative colitis, Renfrow signed with the Carolina Panthers last Sunday, marking a return to football and a return to the Carolinas. He joins a young receiving corps headlined by 2024 first-round pick Xavier Legette, the former South Carolina standout who torched SEC defenses last fall.
Despite the history between their alma maters, there’s no lingering animosity—only mutual respect and growing camaraderie.
He’s a really good dude,” Legette told Kay Adams during a recent interview. “We’ve already started building that chemistry, just talking in the locker room, finding we’ve got a lot in common. We grew up not far from each other, so it’s been easy to relate.”
The relationship may seem unlikely on paper—one a national championship hero in orange, the other a Gamecock star turned first-round NFL talent—but it’s emblematic of the fresh start both players are embracing in Charlotte.
