Whoever Clemson signs today as part of the second signing period for college football, it will be icing on the cake for Dabo Swinney and his staff.
On Dec. 20, Clemson signed the nation’s No. 1 player—according to the 24/7 Composite Rankings—quarterback Trevor Lawrence and the nation’s No. 3 player, defensive end Xavier Thomas. They also inked defensive end K.J. Henry, the No. 5 overall player according to ESPN.
Also, let’s not forget about 5-star offensive lineman Jackson Carman, who stunned everyone—including Clemson—when he signed with the Tigers over Ohio State. Carman (6-6, 350) was one of five finalists for the USA TODAY’s National Offensive Player of the Year, quite a distinction for an offensive lineman.
In all, Clemson signed 15 players on Dec. 20, including 10 who had 4- and 5-star ratings according to the 24/7 composite rankings. Five of those players ranked No. 1 in their respected states, the first time that has happened in Clemson history.
The five players are Carman (Ohio), Henry (North Carolina), wide receiver Derion Kendrick (South Carolina), Thomas (Florida) and Trevor Lawrence (Georgia).
“We just signed up an unbelievable group of young men to come to Clemson, and I will tell you, it never gets old when guys choose to come and be a part of our program, especially with how transparent we are in the process and telling them who we are, what the expectations and standards are for our program,” Swinney said back on Dec. 20. “For young people to come and want to be a part of that type of structure is great.”
And as great as landing all of those guys were, let’s not forget about the greatest recruiting job Swinney accomplished last month when he convinced defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, defensive ends Clelin Ferrell and Austin Bryant and offensive tackle Mitch Hyatt to all return to Clemson for one more season.
If you were using the star-scale to measure the talents of the four First-Team All-Americans, they would all be considered 10-star prospects.
Clemson returns all four stars—including rising junior Dexter Lawrence—on the defensive line, while Mitch Hyatt gives the offensive line three returning starters up front.
No one expected Clemson to keep all four players, but somehow it did. Now the Tigers return all four stars—including rising junior Dexter Lawrence—on the defensive line, while Hyatt gives the offensive line three returning starters up front.
Many thought after the season Bryant, Ferrell and Wilkins were sure locks to go to the NFL. Look at it this way, Clemson’s defense should be even better than it was this past season, and the Tigers weren’t too shabby in 2017, either.
Clemson finished this past season ranked second nationally in scoring defense, fourth in total defense, fourth in passing defense and 12th in rushing defense.
The Tigers also led nation in sacks with 46 and their 109 tackles for loss ranked sixth nationally. For the first time ever, Clemson led the ACC in total, scoring, rushing and passing defense in the same season.
In all, considering Tanner Muse—who started half the season at strong safety last fall—will move over to free safety to replace Van Smith, the Tigers will return nine players who started at least six games in 2017.
Over the last five games of the season, Clemson’s defense did not allow an opponent to total more than 261 yards. Opponents averaged just 225.4 yards and 10.8 points per game over that span. Even in the loss to Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, the Tigers held the Crimson Tides’ offense to a season-low 261 total yards.
With Wilkins, Ferrell and Bryant all returning, plus Lawrence already in the fold, the defense will be better than ever for defensive coordinator Brent Venables. Joining Clemson’s dominate front four is starting weakside linebacker Kendall Joseph, who was second on the team with 90 tackles, middle linebackers Tre Lamar and J.D. Davis, safeties Muse and K’Von Wallace and corners Mark Fields and Trayvon Mullen.
The offense should be good as well. It returns seven starters, not counting the fact Tremayne Anchrum and Sean Pollard shared starts at the right tackle position. Hyatt, like Bryant, Ferrell and Wilkins, returned to school for another season despite being a possible first-round pick in the draft.
Joining Hyatt on offense is of course quarterback Kelly Bryant, who went 12-2 in his first season as a starter and earned ACC Championship Game MVP honors, running backs Travis Etienne and Tavien Feaster, wide receiver Hunter Renfrow—who led the team in receptions—and starting tight end Milan Richard.
Clemson finished third in the ACC in scoring offense in 2017.
With 15 starters back (17 if you count Muse and Pollard), plus the return of Greg Huegel at placekicker and Will Spiers at punter, the Tigers are a lock to not only be the favorite to win the ACC for a fourth straight year, but also a preseason Top-3 pick.
Also, considered this, the Tigers return 11 non-starters on defense that saw considerable playing time in 2017, while the offense will also have 11 non-starters who got a lot of experience in crucial situations as well.
In other words, Clemson is loaded across the board on both sides of the ball. Once again, the Tigers will be in contention for another trip to the College Football Playoff and the national championship.
So remember, whoever the Tigers sign today is icing on top of what is already a very sweet cake.