By Will Vandervort.
The tight end position will be a very interesting battle this spring and summer. From 2009-2012, Clemson owned the ACC’s best tight end, but that changed last year when productivity in the position went way down.
Jordan Leggett and Stanton Seckinger never lived up to the standards they set for themselves from the previous season, and though Jay Jay McCullough came on strong and improved greatly from 2013, he missed the last four games after being suspended indefinitely from the team.
Coaches always say that if you want to improve a position, then you bring in more competition. That’s exactly what head coach Dabo Swinney and his staff has done. Milan Richard and Cannon Smith both redshirted last fall and will get a chance to prove themselves this spring before four-star recruit Garrett Williams joins the team this fall.
Jordan Leggett, Jr., 6-foot-5, 250 pounds
About: Leggett had a down year in 2014 primarily due to injuries to his knees. The rising junior finished the year with just 14 catches for 161 yards and a touchdown. He has 26 receptions for 337 yards and three touchdowns in 21 games, including eight starts in his career.
Strengths: He is the team’s most athletic tight end. He can cause miss matches on linebackers and safeties due to his deceptive speed and his 6-foot-5 height. With his ability to run clean routes, he plays more like a wide receiver than a tight end.
Weaknesses: He needs to be more physical. Several times last year he either missed on a block or just did not want to create contact. He has also been injury prone as he has missed parts of 2013 and ’14 with injuries, including the Russell Athletic Bowl in December. He also missed the Syracuse game this past fall. He is expected to practice in the spring.
Stanton Seckinger, Sr., 6-foot-5, 240 pounds
About: Seckinger never lived up to his expectations for 2014 when he was named a starter back in the spring. An ankle injury caused him to miss most of camp and he was never really the same afterwards. He did play in 12 of the 13 games, missing only the Russell Athletic Bowl with a knee injury. He caught just nine passes for 122 yards and a touchdown a year after catching 21 passes for 244 yards and four touchdowns in 2013. He has 34 receptions for 401 yards and six touchdowns in 33 games, including 11 starts in his career. Clemson is 6-0 in his career when he has a receiving touchdown.
Strengths: Works extremely hard and brings good leadership to the team. A former walk-on, he earned his way onto the team as a wide receiver and then moved to the tight end position in 2013 to help the squad with depth.
Weaknesses: Like Leggett, Seckinger needs to be more physical and do a better job of blocking. There is a question on how strong we will be after reconstructive knee surgery in December. He will miss all of the spring, but is expected back by the time summer rolls around.
Milan Richard, redshirt Fr., 6-foot-2, 245 pounds
About: He was rated as the No. 2 tight end in the nation by ESPN last year. An All-State player at Calvary Baptist High school in Savannah. Ga., Richard caught 78 passes for 1,243 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Strengths: He is very athletic and quick and according to Clemson coach Dabo Swinney got a lot stronger thanks to his power-hour sessions during the regular season.
Weaknesses: He is raw. He still has to learn more of the offense and the tight end’s role in it.
Cannon Smith, redshirt Fr., 6-foot-4, 240 pounds
About: Smith is the son of former Clemson defensive end Bill Smith, who played and started for the Tigers’ 1981 National Championship team. Cannon Smith was rated as the No. 3 tight end in the country by ESPN coming out of high school. He caught 66 passes for 1,144 yards and 10 touchdowns in his career at Hammond High School in Columbia, S.C.
Strengths: Already big and physical, he developed even more during Power-Hour sessions this past fall. He is technically sound and has the strength and physicality to be a good run blocker.
Weaknesses: He isn’t as athletic as other tight ends on the team.