It wasn’t the best time, though it rarely is for any injury. Yet all things considered, it could’ve been worse for Jeadyn Lukus.

Lukus is more than four months removed from surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder, an injury that started during his prep days as a star defensive back at nearby Mauldin High. It was aggravated this spring to the point of a complete tear when Lukus dove to deflect a pass during one of Clemson’s practices.

“I think they just put (surgical) tacks in it and put it to the bone,” Lukus recently told The Clemson Insider. 

The shoulder was initially sore once he started the rehab process, Lukus said. Now less than two weeks before the start of fall camp, Clemson’s freshman cornerback said he’s pain-free.

“Now it feels great,” Lukus said. “Working out every day, and it feels really good.”

The injury forced Clemson to shut Lukus down after just his ninth practice as a Tiger, meaning his missed nearly half of the spring, including the annual Orange and White finale. Lukus admitted it hampered his physical progression as a first-year player, but he still attended most of the practices he missed and took mental reps of first-year defensive coordinator Wesley Goodwin’s system.

“I can kind of keep up (mentally) with the other guys that were able to play,” he said.

How comfortable would he be if he was immediately thrown into action against Georgia Tech in the Labor Day opener?

“That’s what we work on the entire offseason is being ready for that game day, so hopefully I’ll be A-OK,” Lukus said.

Clemson doesn’t plan to waste any time getting the talented in-state product on the field as long as he maintains his clean bill of health. A five-star recruit ranked in the 247Sports Composite as the top recruit in South Carolina and No. 7 cornerback nationally, the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Lukus brings plenty of size and range to a position where a pair of new starters are needed with Andrew Booth and Mario Goodrich both off to the NFL.

“I’m long and physical,” Lukus said, referring to his skill set. “Good ball skills and good man (coverage) technique are probably the best things.”

There’s also not much proven depth at corner. Sheridan Jones, Fred Davis and rising sophomore Nate Wiggins are back, but Lukus and fellow true freshmen Toriano Pride Jr. and Myles Oliver make up the rest of the scholarship corners on the outside (Malcolm Greene is returning at nickel).

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said he’d seen enough in Lukus’ limited practice time this spring to know he will be an immediate contributor. Pride, who had seven tackles in the spring game, also got a head start on his time at Clemson as an early enrollee.

“Me and Tori are both going to get some good playing time,” Lukus said. “Just acclimating to the speed of the game and learning the playbook are going to be the biggest things us as freshmen. But I think we’ll do just fine.”