Rogers named first-runner-up in Miss America competition

Miss South Carolina Ali Rogers is just as proud of Clemson as the University is of her. With a host of Clemson supporters in attendance, the Laurens native competed for the Miss America crown this past January. She was elated to make Top 15, but making it to first-runner-up was more than she could have imagined.
“Even the idea of competing for Miss America was bizarre to me, to be honest,” Rogers says.
Growing up, Rogers was more interested in sports than pageants, attending her first Clemson football game at only four weeks old. She became a freshman in the fall of 2010, continuing the family tradition.
She held a senator position in student government, interned in the football office and became a sister of Alpha Delta Pi. Those are just some of the things Rogers misses most while she finishes her duties as Miss South Carolina.
Those duties include traveling all over the state to schools, churches and organizations to give inspiring speeches and meet her fans.
That crown will expire this summer, and Rogers will return to Clemson in the fall to finish her degree in communication studies. Eventually, she hopes to pursue a master’s degree with the help of the Miss America scholarship money.