Clemson’s timing could hardly be better. Vic Burley is back after a two-week suspension, and Dabo Swinney wasted little time bringing his best defensive lineman back into the mix ahead of the Tigers’ ACC opener against North Carolina.
Swinney had every reason to stay firm after Burley’s late-summer arrest, but he made it clear this week that the situation had been handled and the freshman was ready to rejoin the team.
"I'm not gonna kick him off for being stupid ... he took ownership of it," Swinney said upon reinstating Burley to the team. "Cost him some money, too. Pretty big consequences when you get suspended."
That return matters because Clemson’s front has been stretched thin almost from the start. The defensive line took another blow when Oklahoma transfer Markus Strong was lost for the season after Week 1, and the burden has since fallen on Amare Adams, Andy Burburija, Champ Thompson, and others trying to patch things together. The result has been a unit that has looked short-handed and overmatched more often than not.
The numbers tell the story. Clemson held Georgia Southern to 22 rushing yards on 18 carries, but that came after LSU ripped through the Tigers for 309 rushing yards on 58 carries and four touchdowns. On the season, Clemson is allowing 165.5 yards per game on the ground, and if that number shows up again against North Carolina, it could tilt the matchup toward the Tar Heels.
That’s where Burley comes in. He was not listed on the depth chart at either defensive tackle spot entering the week, but he is expected to play. The bigger question is how much he can change the game when he gets on the field.
Clemson does not need Burley to play every snap. It needs him to be disruptive. It needs him to steady the interior, give the rest of the rotation a chance to breathe, and help a defense that has been carrying too much weight too early in the season.
North Carolina is not coming in just to make up the numbers, either. Bill Belchick’s team will try to control the ball on offense and sprinkle in deep shots off the hand of Billy Edwards Jr. Will Heldt and the pass rush showed what they can do against Georgia Southern, but the run defense remains the area Clemson cannot afford to let slide.
This is the kind of game where Swinney and Burley have to be aligned fast. The Tar Heels are looking up, and Clemson’s ACC outlook could hinge on whether its defensive line can rise to the moment. If Burley makes his presence felt early and often, the Tigers have a path to handing UNC its first loss of the season.
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