While many were focused on all the top prospects that have been on campus the last two weeks for the Dabo Swinney High School Football Camp, the rest of the Tigers’ top six 2016 recruiting class arrived on campus this past Sunday. Which members of the 2016 class will make an instant impact this season?

In the third story of our Instant Impact series we look at one of the nation’s top overall players in defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence.

Lawrence is not only one of the top two defensive tackles in the nation, he was ranked as the No. 2 overall player in the nation for the 2016 class.

The 5-star player has been on campus since January and received major praise during the spring from the coaching staff and his teammates. The Clemson Insider scouted Lawrence the Friday night before the NC State game last fall and came away very impressed. That night, in addition to the Clemson coaches on hand, Ohio State and Alabama were also in attendance to watch his game.

Clemson returns very solid depth at defensive tackle with Christian Wilkins and Carlos Watkins leading the way. However, Lawrence is simply too good to stay off the field.  The Wilkins, Lawrence combination at defensive tackle may be the Tigers best ever.  It will certainly be as good as any in the nation this year.

Lawrence’s arrival will also give Wilkins the flexibility to move to defensive end at times this season and help out with the depth on the outside.

The 6-foot-5, 340-pound “Man Child” will be a force in the middle and help push the offensive line in the backfield to disrupt the timing of plays. Having been here for the spring practice, Lawrence already has a good feel for defensive coordinator Brent Venables’ scheme. Defensive tackles coach Dan Brooks is one of the best defensive line coaches in the nation, and he now has another one of the nation’s best to mold into a future NFL star.

While there are questions at defensive end heading into the season, there are none at tackle. Expect Lawrence to play early and often in one of the top units in the country. His presence in the middle, along with Wilkins and Watkins, will have offensive coordinators game planning on how to stop the surge in the middle. This will help open things up for the Tigers’ young defensive ends on the edge to make their marks. The future at defensive tackle is as bright as ever for Clemson and Lawrence is a big reason why.

TCI’s Clemson preseason magazine is now available.  Order your copy of Unfinished Business – An Insider Look at Clemson’s 2016 season today.