and in 1963, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit directed Clemson to admit Gantt. Clemson's leaders warned students to remain nonviolent as Gantt registered under press scrutiny. The rest of the process went relatively smoothly, unlike desegregation efforts that turned violent like the Ole Miss Riot.
Gantt enrolled in 1963, and later recalled that he was harassed by other students for the first few days and later sometimes insulted, but never directly confronted. He attributed this to his large build and president R.C. Edwards' stern warnings against violence. Edwards asked Gantt to avoid student dances, but Gantt attended them and football games. He contrasted his experience with that of James Meredith at the University of Mississippi, and the students who desegregated the University of South Carolina and the University of Georgia.
Also in 1963, Lucinda Brawley became the first black woman admitted to Clemson and the second black student to attend, and Larry Nazry transferred in the semester after.
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