Clemson’s first official depth chart of the season arrived in the wake of a rough opener, and it gives a clearer picture of how Dabo Swinney and his staff are sorting through the fallout from the 51-10 loss to No. 11 LSU.
The biggest takeaway is at quarterback, where redshirt junior Christopher Vizzina and true freshman Tait Reynolds will go into Saturday’s home opener against Georgia Southern as co-starters. Vizzina opened against LSU, was briefly replaced by Reynolds before halftime, then came back in the fourth quarter.
He finished 10-of-16 for 86 yards and a pick-six. Reynolds handled the entire third quarter and went 4-of-6 for 22 yards.
Swinney had said after the game that the staff still needed time before settling on a plan.
"I don't know," he said on Saturday "I mean, we got to watch the tape and evaluate, and we'll go from there."
Now the chart shows both quarterbacks in the mix, though Swinney made clear on Tuesday that Clemson isn’t ready to spell out exactly how the rotation will work.
“I’m not going to get into the specifics of how we’re going to manage the quarterbacks other than they’re both going to play,” he stated. “And again, that’s just where we are, where we came out of the competition. We just need to go play games.
We had to go to LSU on an opener, you know, we got to go play some games. And then all of a sudden, you’ve got 13 snaps and it’s 24-3.
And so it didn’t really go according to our script. But we didn’t really come out of the game with true clarity, you know, it just wasn’t enough… Eventually something’s going to happen one way or another, but we got to go play.”
The line of scrimmage was another major issue in Week 1, and the numbers tell the story. Clemson gave up 309 rushing yards while managing only 40 yards on 26 carries of its own.
That struggle shows up again in the updated offensive line picture. Outside of Harris Sewell and Brayden Jacobs, the other three projected starters have combined for just three career starts.
Jacobs, despite being one of the more experienced names on paper, has only four career starts. Easton Ware had never taken a college snap before Saturday, and Sewell was originally an offensive guard before moving to center for this season.
The changes continue up front heading into Week 2. Ware is now listed as the second-string right tackle behind fifth-year Collin Sadler, who sat out Week 1 with what Swinney called a “fluke” injury. At right guard, junior Ronan O’Connell - who graded out worst among Clemson’s offensive linemen last week - is now listed as a co-starter with second-year Tucker Kattus, who has played only two offensive snaps in his career.
There were also notable shifts on the back end of the defense. Senior Ronan Hanafin is listed as a co-starter at Rover with Southern Mississippi transfer Corey Myrick, and he is also a co-starter at free safety alongside Old Dominion transfer Jerome Carter III.
The Myrick-Hanafin pairing makes some sense after both graded below average, but Carter’s placement is the more eye-catching part of the chart. He was one of Clemson’s better performers against LSU, finishing with 10 tackles and a pass deflection while grading out as a top-five defensive player.
Still, Swinney was upbeat about what he saw from the secondary overall, calling it a “really good group” and a “bright spot” from a discouraging night.
“I think we got a really good group. I think they got a chance to be really really good,” he praised.
“Uh, I think there were some bright spots embedded in the disappointment and I think our secondary is a bright spot. I think Elliot [Washington] really showed he’s going to be a good one.
We know what Ashton [Hampton] is. You know, we gained some knowledge coming out of it with those guys, seeing them for the first time.
Myrick, you know, he’s physical. He had a couple, again, you’re going to have some missed tackles in every first game.
You get two scrimmages, that’s all you get. And so there’s always going to be that.
You see that in the NFL, too. But a couple missed tackles, but I thought it wasn’t too big for him.
He’s a physical kid. And uh man, I thought Jerome Carter really showed some stuff as well.
I mean, it’s a good group. [Corian] Gipson, [he’s] a really good player.
I think [the secondary] is going to be a strength for us.”
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Clemson Gets A Needed D-Line Boost Before Its First ACC Test
Clemsons defensive front got a much-needed lift this week with the reinstatement of tackle Vic Burley after a suspension tied to a public disorderly conduct arrest. Burley still will miss the upcoming game against Georgia Southern, but his return is lined up for a far more important moment, with the Tigers expecting to have him back for their ACC opener against North Carolina.
That matters because Clemson is also bracing for the likely loss of defensive tackle Markus Strong, who is expected to be out for the season after suffering a lower-leg injury in a recent game. Between Burleys return and Strongs injury, the Tigers interior line picture has shifted quickly, and the next few weeks will tell just how much depth they can piece together before conference play starts to sharpen the stakes. [Read more 🡒]
Clemsons Ugly Opener Put Dabo Swinney Under An Unwanted Spotlight
Clemsons season-opening loss to LSU did more than drop the Tigers into an early hole. It also put a sharp light on the parts of the roster that did hold up, especially in the secondary, where cornerback Ashton Hampton and safety Corey Myrick drew the kind of attention that can matter as the schedule tightens. For a team that came in expecting a cleaner start, there was at least some proof that a few individual pieces can still compete at a high level even when the overall performance falls short.
The bigger issue, though, is what the opener said about where Clemson stands around its head coach. Dabo Swinney is used to having the benefit of the doubt, but this one invited more questions than answers, from the way the game was handled to how much work remains before the Tigers look like a finished product. The next few weeks will say plenty about whether the loss was just a bad night or the first sign that Clemson has more fixing to do than anyone wanted to admit. [Read more 🡒]
Clemsons Home Opener Comes With A Price Fans Will Notice
Clemsons home opener comes with a familiar kind of college-football cost, and this one is a hefty one. According to a contract obtained through public records, the Tigers will pay Georgia Southern for Saturday nights game at Memorial Stadium, a matchup set for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff on the ACC Network.
The deal also spells out the usual logistics that come with bringing a road team to town, including ticket allotments and access for Georgia Southerns team and staff. It is the sort of behind-the-scenes bookkeeping that rarely gets much attention on game day, even though it helps shape the business side of a September Saturday in Death Valley. [Read more 🡒]