Clemson has four veteran safeties that figure to get the majority of the playing time on the back end of the defense next season, but one of the youngsters at the position is turning at least one head this spring.

Kylon Griffin was buried on the depth chart last season, which ultimately led to the Alabama native playing in just two games as a true freshman and redshirting. Clemson still has plenty of experience at Griffin’s position with Jalyn Phillips, R.J. Mickens, Tyler Venables and Andrew Mukuba back for another season, but safeties coach Mickey Conn said Griffin has made the kind of strides that gives the 5-foot-11, 190-pounder a realistic chance at being a more significant contributor come the fall.

“Kylon Griffin has really stepped up. He’s in a whole other stratosphere than he was last year,” Conn said. “Really smart player similar to R.J. Mickens. Understands the game. Understand what to do. So I’ve been really pleased with his progress.”

While a good number of Clemson’s 2022 signees went through spring practice as early enrollees, Griffin wasn’t among them. He signed with the Tigers in February of last year and didn’t get to campus until that summer, which played in part in him being destined for a redshirt from the start. 

“If you can make it to the spring, you can kind of get spoon fed a little bit,” Conn said. “But when you get to the summer and to fall practices, it’s hard because we’ve got to get ready to play and we’ve got to get ready to win. You don’t get as many reps., so you don’t get as many opportunities to be seen.”

Griffin spent most of last season giving Clemson’s offense looks in practice as a member of the scout team, a role Conn said Griffin learned to embrace. 

“And then when I do pull him onto the varsity field, he’s over there and he’s studying on his own,” Conn said. “He’s learning on his own, and he’s just doing a really good job.”

Not only have the last nine months given Griffon a chance to get caught up mentally in Wes Goodwin’s defense, but Conn said he’s seen a noticeable improvement in his man coverage. Conn said he believes it’s all helped Griffin’s confidence entering his second year of college football.

“Playing safety is hard,” Conn said. “You’ve got to be good in the run and you’ve got to be able to tackle, but at the same time, you’ve got to be able to cover like a corner. So watching his coverage ability from where it was when he first got here, watching what he’s done this spring, you can tell he’s really worked on his trade and his craft.”

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