You can’t call Clemson’s roll to the 2016 National Title improbable. They were in the national title game the season before, so coming back in wasn’t a shocker, even though their upset win over No. 1 Alabama certainly was. But the 2017 Clemson Tigers will look a lot different from this season’s version that hoisted a couple of bejeweled footballs and trophies.
Here’s who the Tigers are losing to graduation and the NFL draft;
DeShaun Watson, QB
Mike Williams, WR
Wayne Gallman, RB
Artavis Scott, WR
Cordrea Tankersly, CB
Carlos Watkins, DT
Jordan Leggett, TE
Jadar Johnson, Safety
Ben Boulware, LB
Jay Guillermo, Center
That’s a hell of a list of talent. In fact, that’s pretty much every key offensive player for Clemson except Hunter Renfrow. Watson, Williams and Leggett will all be first rounders. Tankersly and Watkins could end up in the first round too. Needless to say Clemson has been loaded over the last two seasons. But can they reload for a run in 2017?
It’s hard to say. My instincts say there’s no way it’s possible, but Swinney is building a powerhouse in Death Valley. His 2017 class of commitments is already the No. 11-ranked unit in the country and the No. 2 ranked group in the ACC. And Swinney’s work is just getting started. Swinney has even locked in a couple of kids from my neck of the woods, Oak Ridge High School wide receiver Tee Higgins and Knoxville Catholic High School wideout Amari Rodgers.
I never got to cover Higgins, the 6-foot-5, 188-pound, five-star recruit this season, but I did get to see Rodgers play and, let me tell you, he was a man among smurfs. Rodgers was so good and so dominant in the games I covered that I can’t really judge him. He’s a four-star recruit or better, but against normal high school athletes it was like watching Neo in the Matrix. There was absolutely nothing he couldn’t do and nothing any other team could do to stop him.
Higgins and Rodgers won’t be entering a bare cupboard. Renfrow will be back, as will Ray-Ray McCloud and Deon Cain. T.J Chase, Jack Swinney, Diondre Overton and Trevion Thompson will all be competing for playing time too.
At running back, Tavien Feaster was Gallman’s primary back up and averaged six yards per carry. C.J. Fuller averaged 4.5 yards per carry and Tyshon Dye was worth 5.2 yards per carry and all are coming back. They’ll be joined by four-star recruit Travis Etienne out of Jennings, La.
Outside of Watson, Leggett may be the most difficult player on the departing list to replace, but Swinney knew it was coming. That’s why he’s been loading up with tight ends in every signing period over the last couple of years. The Tigers have eight TEs coming back next season and only one, D.J. Greenlee, will be a senior.
On the defensive side of the ball, all three levels will be hurting with Tankersly, Johnson, Boulware and Watkins all leaving. Boulware’s hole also comes with a dose of leadership graduating, probably the second most important player, in that role, on the team after Watson. Talent-wise, Boulware shouldn’t be too hard to replace. It’s his brain and attitude that Clemson will miss. Kendall Joseph should be more than ready to step into that leadership role for Swinney.
While no big defensive lineman have showed up on Clemson’s hard commits list yet, they’ll be coming. As it is now, the Tigers are already loaded there with guys like Dexter Lawrence and Albert Huggins primed to move into Watkins’ role.
At corner, the Tigers loaded up on that position last offseason, nabbing Brian Dawkins Jr. and Trayvon Mullen and adding them to an already deep rotation. Four-star A.J. Terrell out of Atlanta, Ga. will also be in the mix. Terrell is 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds and is the No. 6-ranked high school senior corner in the country. Four-star LeAnthony Williams Jr. from Roswell, Ga. is a hard commit and is the No. 29-ranked corner.
Safety is another deep unit on Clemson’s depth chart, so Johnson’s absence shouldn’t be felt too hard. Van Smith will return for his junior season and finished the season No. 3 on the team in tackles behind Boulware and Joseph. Isaiah Simmons is the guy to look for here along with K’Vonn Wallace. Incoming freshman Baylon Spector out of Calhoun, Ga., could see some time too.
The biggest hole, no question, will be quarterback. Watson was the best quarterback in college football last season and one of the best over the past two seasons. Frankly, in my estimation, I would only rank Dak Prescott above him in the last two draft classes and since I’m the only analyst on the planet that had Prescott as his No.1 rated QB last year, that should probably mean something.
But who will be the guy? Who’s going to step into a legend’s shoes?
Swinney really likes back up Kelly Bryant and the safe bet is its his job to lose. Bryant has earned the shot, sitting for two seasons behind Watson and learning. He’s 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, so he’ll look the part. Plus, he’s a local legend since he was the South Carolina Football Coaches Association Player of the Year his senior year at Wren High School.
Then there’s Zerrick Cooper, Clemson’s four-star recruit from last season’s class. There’s even talk it could be Hunter Johnson, the Tigers’ five-star commit this year or four-star Chase Brice. I’m sure they’ll all get a shot, but Bryant will be tough to beat out, even if a guys like Cooper and Johnson have elite-level talent.
Can Clemson get back to the national title with this crew? I don’t think so, but they’ll still be a Top 10 team and in 2018? Yeah, I think they’ll be back.
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