By William Qualkinbush.

We continue our recap of the Clemson football team’s progress during spring practice with a look at the defensive front for the Tigers…

Much like its peer group on the offensive side of the ball, Clemson’s defensive line will set the tone for that unit in 2015. Plenty of questions abound all over the defense, and some potential answers were explored throughout spring ball.

One of the major gaps to fill is in the leadership department. There was no question last season where that responsibility rested, as the shoulders of Grady Jarrett and Vic Beasley were more than capable of tag-teaming that role within the defensive meeting room. Now both are gone, presumably to the NFL, and a group of players who saw them operate all year long will attempt to keep the momentum going.

The leader up front this spring was probably D.J. Reader, who Dabo Swinney called “unblockable” on a number of occasions. Reader has logged a ton of snaps and has spent a lot of time in opposing backfields. If he can replicate Jarrett’s dominance inside in 2015—even coming close would probably do the trick—it will make things a whole lot easier for every other member of the defense.

Junior Carlos Watkins appears to be the heir to the other starting spot at defensive tackle, vacated by DeShawn Williams. With a full offseason healthy—both physically and emotionally—Watkins has impressed with his growth as a player. Similar reviews have come the way of redshirt freshman Scott Pagano, the redshirt freshman who showcased the potential to dominate the line of scrimmage on a given play. Those three players should get the bulk of the playing time, and the coaching staff anxiously awaits the arrival of freshman stud Christian Wilkins, who is expected to earn snaps immediately.

The two defensive end slots were also vacated following the 2014 season, so Brent Venables will be relying upon the potential contributions of junior Shaq Lawson. It is telling that no one is remotely concerned about Lawson’s ability to make up for the loss of Beasley at defensive end. He will do it in a different way—with greater power and less speed—but Lawson’s game is more than capable of filling the void.

Rising junior Kevin Dodd has slotted in at the other defensive end spot. He left much to be desired in his lone start last season at Georgia, but the upstate South Carolina native improved from there and hasn’t stopped doing so since the calendar turned. Many are awaiting the arrival of prized recruit Albert Huggins, but Dodd did enough during the spring to put the hype on pause—if only for a moment.

Plenty of players are competing for spaces on the depth chart at end right now, and all had their moments during the spring. At the moment, fourth-year junior Martin Aiken appears to have the inside track to a two-deep spot, at least until the reinforcements arrive in the summer. Redshirt freshman Ebenezer Ogundeko showed flashes but probably still has some growing to do. The same can be said for rising sophomore Dane Rogers, who should get a chance to prove himself in the fall. Redshirt freshman Richard Yeargin could also see the field in certain situations.

Make no mistake: Clemson lost a truckload of talent and experience off of its defensive line. It would be foolish to expect the group that remains to equal the production of last year’s unit, which featured four players that should be invited to NFL camps this offseason. Still, enough remains—albeit unproven—that a massive dropoff doesn’t seem to be in order, and a nice spring from several critical pieces only enhances that view.