Frank Sinatra in his headphones, LSU on the schedule: Christopher Vizzina's Clemson moment

CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Clemson quarterback Christopher Vizzina has an old school vibe about him.

He grew up in an Italian household in Birmingham, Alabama, and, in a day and age when so many college athletes listen to hip-hop or rap, the 21-year-old redshirt junior prefers to hear Frank Sinatra on his headphones as part of his pregame routine.

Vizzina's musical preference isn't all that makes him somewhat of a unicorn in college football.

He's one of the rare quarterbacks in today's fast-changing college football landscape who has spent three years biding his time at the same school — mostly playing behind NFL draft pick Cade Klubnik — awaiting his turn to start. He refused to take the quick fix option of transferring to another school.

Now his opportunity has finally arrived at Clemson.

Coach Dabo Swinney informed Vizzina earlier this week that he'll start Saturday night in the opener at No. 11 LSU, although Swinney made it clear he must perform well to keep the job.

If Vizzina stumbles, true freshman Tait Reynolds is waiting in the wings.

But for now Vizzina is enjoying the “surreal” moment of finally realizing his college dream.

And he did it, as Sinatra once sang, “My way.”

“It’s obviously not gone the way I planned, and rarely do things happen the way we think they’re going to,” Vizzina said. ... So you’re just thinking about being a freshman, coming in here, and having the tools but not really mentally ready, and then just growing every single year."

Vizzina is under pressure to help Clemson rebound from arguably its worst season ever under Dabo Swinney.

The Tigers won eight Atlantic Coast Conference championships in 10 years prior to bottoming out last season.

Clemson lost its home opener to LSU and things went South quickly.

When it was all over the Tigers, who where ranked No. 4 in the nation to start the season, finished 7-6 and tied for seventh in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Rather than its traditional spot in the College Football Playoff, Clemson had to settle for the Pinstripe Bowl, where they lost 22-10 to Penn State.

“It's pain(ful) when you go through a season like last year," Swinney said. “There’s a lot of pain associated with that — when you love something, and care so much about something, and it doesn’t go like you want it to.”

Swinney said the only he thing he knows to do is regroup, work hard and get better.

“Now we get to go write a new story,” Swinney said.

And Vizzina will have a big say in how that is written.

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