K.J. Henry knows what it’s like to be a big-time prospect, having come to Clemson as a five-star from North Carolina back in January 2018. But even Henry admits that coming out of high school, he didn’t look like the type of freshmen that the Tigers currently have on their defensive line.
Henry, who is now heading to the NFL as a fifth-round pick of the Washington Commanders, joined ACC Network’s ACC PM show recently and joked that he would have been riding the pine if he had come into Clemson with guys like highly touted true freshman Peter Woods.
Woods headlines Clemson’s freshmen D-line class that also includes a bunch of other former top prospects in Vic Burley, Stephiylan Green, T.J. Parker, David Ojiegbe and A.J. Hoffler.
Burley, Green and Parker all enrolled early in January and went through spring practice, along with Woods.
“He’s definitely another one of those guys coming in, he’s not hard to find,” Henry said of Woods. “He’s going to make some splash, and really a lot of those freshmen, especially those D-linemen.
“I joke now, I tell them like, a five-star when I was coming up is different than a five-star now, and these guys would have me sitting on the bench the way that they’re coming out of high school because I didn’t look like that. I didn’t look like that coming out of high school. So yeah, I’m excited for the young guys on this team, and they’re going to be difference-makers this year.”
Henry, who spent the last five seasons playing defensive end for the Tigers and earned second-team All-ACC honors last season, also spoke about some Clemson players he saw in the spring that people should be watching out for this season.
“I’m biased to the defense, right,” Henry said. “But I feel like there’s a lot of people you guys already know. Obviously Barrett (Carter) and (Jeremiah) Trotter are going to make another step in their careers. Really loved what I saw out of (Andrew) Mukuba this spring. I went to a lot of practices, and I feel like he’s got his swagger back. Nate (Wiggins) looks good, and there’s just a lot of developmental roles that it’s not even that they are empty, it’s just next man up.
“So, there’ll be a lot of guys on that defense and offense who are excited for the opportunity. Clemson’s going to be back on top again, that’s all I can tell you.”
Dear Old Clemson has added the Tiger Sack Pack to our online store. Save by getting the Two Pack of signed cards from two of the nation’s top defensive ends, Myles Murphy and Xavier Thomas.
Now there is a new way you can support Clemson student-athletes. Purchase collectibles from Dear Old Clemson and the proceeds with go to support Clemson student-athletes. 
Dear Old Clemson is doing NIL the ‘Clemson way’, but we need your help to make sure we build a sustainable, repeatable model that will help keep Clemson competitive with the other top programs around the nation.
Dabo Swinney: “We need your assistance more than ever to provide meaningful NIL opportunities. Tiger Impact, Dear Old Clemson and other collectives allow student-athletes to utilize their voice and platform to maximize their NIL opportunities and strengthen their impact in the community.”
Graham Neff:
“Tiger Impact, Dear Old Clemson and other collectives need your support to help provide meaningful NIL opportunities for our student athletes. We are doing things the right way, the Clemson way with integrity as a non-negotiable and we fully support the mission of these groups.”
Join the Tiger Club or Lady Tiger Club to help these great student-athletes and help the Tigers compete at the highest level!
