By Will Vandervort.
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said following Wednesday’s practice that running back Tyshon Dye could be used a little more when the 17th-ranked Tigers face No. 22 Georgia Tech on Saturday in Atlanta.
The redshirt freshman made his first appearance of his college career in the fourth quarter in last week’s win at Wake Forest. Swinney said Dye could see more playing time because senior D.J. Howard has been limited in practice, though the head coach did not disclose as to why the running back was limited.
“I told the team tonight that when you are the backup, you have to be ready to play every snap because you just never know,” Swinney said. “D.J. is a little limited so we are pretty thin (at running back) so we need him to be prepared to have a big role for us and it would not surprise me at all to see him have a little bit more time.”
Swinney says the best thing for Dye would be to go through an entire off-season, but obviously that is something they cannot afford to do right now with the injuries to Zac Brooks, Adam Choice and now Howard.
Dye finally got in a game last week and ran the ball five times for 14 yards.
“When is the best time to put a guy in the game who has not taken a snap in a year-and-a-half,” Swinney asked. “Finding that time has been a little bit difficult the last couple of weeks but we finally kind of got it worked out. He is a guy that I think will continue to get better.
“He really needs a spring. That is really what he needs. He needs an off-season, a spring practice, that’s really what he needs, but we can’t give him that right now so we have to make the best of where we are today and I really think we will get a lot of work done at bowl practice with him. He has practiced well and shoot, he has to be ready to go.”
Speaking of the Brooks. Swinney updated the status of Brooks and said the junior’s rehab is going well.
“He will be ready for the spring,” Swinney said. “He is doing really well. His attitude is really good. His wait is good. He is north of 200 (pounds) and is working hard and is doing everything he possibly can to get back and be ready to roll.
“He should be ready to roll for spring ball.”
Brooks broke his right foot the week before the Georgia game and was ruled out for the season.
Finally at his Peake. Swinney said wide receiver Charone Peake is cleared and will be ready to play on Saturday. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound junior can really be a lift to the Tigers’ wide receiving corps if he is indeed productive on the field.
“Peake has done well. He has gone one-on-one, skelly and team pads,” the Clemson coach said. “He has done everything. He is a little further along than Jay (Guillermo), a lot further along than Jay, but Jay is 300-plus pounds. I think that Peake is definitely going to be ready to roll.”
Peake has missed the last six games due to complications from the knee he had surgery on last year to repair a torn ACL. The junior caught nine passes for 60 yards and scored two touchdowns in the three games he played in.
Finding Smith’s replacement. Korrin Wiggins, Jadar Johnson and T.J. Green have all been working in Robert Smith’s place at strong safety. The senior will be suspended for the first half on Saturday after being ejected for targeting Wake Forest tight end Cam Serigne in the fourth quarter.
“We are mixing and matching those guys. It does help us having Korrin a little more available, giving us another guy back there,” Swinney said. “Korrin, Jadar and T.J. are the guys that have been filling in back there and all of them have done a nice job.
“I like what I’m seeing. We still have a lot of work to do. This is a bunch that you prepare for all the way up to kickoff for this group. We have a little work to do.”
Smith is second on the team with 53 tackles.
Guillermo could play. Reserve center Jay Guillermo will be ready to play if the Tigers need him on Saturday, but the plan as of Wednesday night is to have him ready but use Ryan Norton and Reid Webster as the centers against Georgia Tech.
“He has done well and he will definitely be able to play. I would say we are not expecting him to go in and start and play 70 snaps or anything like that,” Swinney said. “We are pretty confident with the five that are going to start the game and hopefully they will play well. All of that will dictate how much Guillermo plays.
“He is still not quite 100 percent, but he is able to play. We will play him if we need him.”
Guillermo has missed the last four games with a broken foot.