CLEMSON — Thomas Brittle felt like he just needed a chance.

He found opportunity at Clemson – and filled a hole at the top of the Tigers’ lineup at the same time.

When Clemson opened the 2012 baseball season last week against UAB, Brittle, a junior center fielder, took the season’s first at-bat as the Tigers’ leadoff man.

He couldn’t have been more excited.

The junior center fielder, a College of Charleston transfer, started all three games and hit .333, scoring three runs in Clemson’s series win.

“It’s definitely been a different feel,” the Lowcountry native said. “For me I’ve been a Clemson fan growing up my whole life, and I always wanted to play in this program. Having the opportunity to do that and get on the field is a dream come true.”

Brittle never felt he had that opportunity at COC. As a sophomore, he hit .265 with two home runs and 10 RBI, playing in 47 games while starting 15.

“I felt like wasn’t getting a fair shot there,” he said, “and I just wanted to go somewhere to get a fresh start and reset.”

He looked at Coastal Carolina, as well as Division II schools where he could play immediately.

Brittle liked what he saw at Clemson – outfielders Chris Epps and Jeff Schaus set to graduate, with junior Will Lamb projected as a potential high draft pick.

“I knew we were losing a lot of guys off last year’s team,” he said, “and with me having to sit out a year I felt like this would be a good place to do that.”

Epps, Lamb and Schaus were all MLB draft picks, and the Tigers’ outfield could remain in flux in the season’s early weeks. But Brittle locked down a spot at the top of the order with excellent speed.

“I like to feel I can bring hustle and a good bit of speed to the lineup,” he said. “I’d like to feel I give 100 percent every day I go out. Just use my speed as a big tool and utilize it as much as I can.”

His teammates have noticed.

Junior third baseman Richie Shaffer said Brittle has “made a great jump.”

“He’s going to be something, he’s going to be a sparkplug kind of guy,” Shaffer said. “ He’s really fast, I mean really fast. And he’s the kind of guy that can hit a routine ground ball to short and beat it out. He has that kind of speed.”

That, he said, can cause opponents major trouble.

“He just is an absolute menace for defenses,” Shaffer said. “Hopefully he can get on and start causing havoc on the basepaths and get the ball rolling right away for us.”

Brittle is just happy to have the opportunity.

“As a leadoff guy, I’d like to be the fire-starter, get on base,” he said. “Steal a base if I had to, and just try to score a run in the first inning to get things going on a good note.”