Clemson Baseball Team Leaves Its Dugout Mid-Game To Shake Hands With Veterans In New Tradition

We've been seeing more and more athletes willing to show their patriotism and express gratitude for being Americans (no points for guessing why this might be the case), and I think we got one of the coolest examples of this, courtesy the Clemson Tigers baseball team.

The Tigers debuted something special this season to honor our nation's veterans.

Midway through the fourth inning, the PA announcer calls for all veterans in attendance to stand and be recognized.

That in itself would be cool, but you see this at a lot of games, and Clemson decided to take this a step further.

At all Clemson home games this season, Lee Greenwood’s "God Bless the USA" will start playing over the PA and the entire team pours out of the dugout and hops into the stands to shake hands with those who served.

Great footage of this came from a recent game against North Carolina A&T.

How cool is that? What a moment.

Clemson head coach Erik Bakich explained to Fox & Friends how this new tradition came to be.

"Our players just understand they get to play baseball in a free country, and that wouldn’t be possible without those service men and women who protect and defend that freedom," he said, per Fox News Digital.

It is such a great idea that's sure to create some emotional and memorable moments for all parties involved.

"I think there’s been some tear-jerking moments for some of them, especially those who maybe haven’t always received the warmest welcome," Bakich said. "But to know in our program and at our games, they’re going to be recognized like they should."

The Clemson skipper added that acts like this are also good for his players and teach them things that they can use far beyond the baseball field.

"We’ve always practiced how we stand for the national anthem," Bakich said. "This is just a way to thank our veterans and those who protect and defend our freedom even at a deeper level of gratitude.

"It’s just such a great way to teach those life lessons and make it more about God and country, as much as it is about playing sports."