Near the end of the 2020 NFL Draft, former Clemson offensive lineman Tremayne Anchrum thought he would end up going undrafted and have to sign a free-agent deal with one of the teams interested in him.

But as he prepared for that increasingly likely possibility, Anchrum received a call from Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay and found out the Rams were going to take him with the sixth-to-last pick of the seventh and final round of the draft (No. 250 overall).

“I knew I was going to be a Day 3 kind of guy,” Anchrum told reporters after being drafted. “So getting to those later rounds, we started getting calls about ‘Hey, we’d love to have you as a free agent.’ I got a couple of head coaches that called me, talking about, ‘Hey, we want you now,’ and me and my father were kind of making arrangements for that. But then Coach McVay called and said, ‘Hey, are you ready to be a Ram?’ At that moment, we all kind of figured I was going to be a free agent, but once I got the news we were all really excited.”

Ironically, Anchrum will play in Los Angeles, where his father, Tremayne Anchrum Sr., played basketball at Southern Cal.

Anchrum represents the Rams organization’s 12th all-time selection from Clemson, including the team’s first since selecting defensive tackle Dorrell Scott in 2009. He is the fifth Clemson offensive lineman drafted among that group and the first since center Dustin Fry in 2007.

“It feels great,” he said. “I’m just grateful to be a part of a great organization, and I’m ready to get started.”

A spot starter in 2016 and 2017, Anchrum went on to become Clemson’s starting right tackle from 2018-19 and helped the Tigers to a 29-1 record in those two seasons. The Powder Springs, Ga., native played 2,516 snaps over 55 games (37 starts) in his career and was a two-time all-conference selection as well as two-time ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week honoree.

Anchrum played both tackle positions in college in addition to practicing at both guard spots. He is most comfortable on the right side of the line but is more than willing to line up wherever the Rams want or need him to and hopes that attitude will help him get on the field sooner than later.

“I do see an opportunity to play,” he said. “I honestly go and I check out who’s been playing where, what they’ve been doing. In all honestly, I told coach like hey, I’m open to taking any spots. I cross-train, I take pride in being a versatile offensive lineman and I’ll come in ready to take any spot that’s available.”

Anchrum believes his experience at Clemson – both in big games against other powerhouse programs and in practice against elite competition on the defensive line – will help him as he transitions to the next level.

“Playing for a high-level team like Clemson is a way, way advantage that you can never really underestimate because when you have a competition level that high where you play the Clemson’s, the Alabama’s, the Ohio State’s of the world, you know what a winning mindset looks like,” Anchrum said. “You know what a championship effort looks like on the back end, on the front end, what it feels like, the day in and day out commitment that it takes to win. Knowing that and playing with a lot of great players, which I don’t think is a negative, but it really holds you accountable to staying at that level of competition and staying on your A game every single day. Taking that into the next level is going to be invaluable.”

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