With Greg Huegel having graduated and Braden Galloway ineligible, Clemson tight ends and special teams coach Danny Pearman has many unknowns for the 2019 season. During the Tigers’ media outing Tuesday in the Allen N. Reeves Football Complex, Pearman discussed his plans for the upcoming year. 

Pearman on freshman Aidan Swanson

“I expect to see a really heated battle between him and Will Spiers, which has been ongoing since the spring and continued through this summer. I really look for good things out of him. He has had a good solid spring for us. He hasn’t won the job per say, but he has competed pretty well for an incoming freshman. It ought to be a good battle going into the fall.”

Pearman on frontrunners at tight end

“At tight end, probably our leading candidate, especially with our Braden Galloway situation, would be J.C. Chalk. Then we have two incoming freshmen, Jaelyn Lay… We also have Davis Allen. Jaelyn was here in the spring and went through the spring. He’s been here all summer. Davis has been here since the second session of summer school. Then we have two kids, Luke Price and J.L. Banks, and those are the kids we have at tight end.”

Pearman on Galloway’s attitude 

“I’m in a lot of contact with Braden. Obviously, disappointed is probably an understatement in that realm. That’s the hand he’s dealt. You can sit here and woller in that all you want, but that is not going to get him any better, us any better. He’s got to take what he has been dealt and deal with it. We look forward to getting him back eligible on the team from that standpoint. He’s going to be a vital part of our team this year. We are going to treat that as if it is an injury. He’s got to stay engaged. He’s got to do his part. He may be the best scout team tight end out there. Whatever he can work for our football team and contribute to it this year, that’s what he is going to do.”

Pearman on Derion Kendrick’s competitive spirit   

“I like him in that fact that he is a little bit of a risk taker. He’s not scared to fail. That’s what really makes him a good corner, and that’s what really makes him a good wideout. If the ball doesn’t come to him, it isn’t the end of the day. When you watch him at corner, he has confidence. He has confidence in his ability. When he does get beat, it’s not the end of the world. He lets it roll off his back and gets back in there. Dealing with failure, ups and downs with how those kids react is huge. That’s huge even with my kids. In today’s kid, that’s a big part of it. He has an innate ability to compete. He liked to compete.”