It’s just two weeks away from Clemson beginning spring practice, and there’s a lot that Dabo Swinney and the staff have to sort out in this early preparation period.
The obvious is seeing how the early enrollees come along, and a few could play a factor in molding the early depth chart. There’s also a few position battles to watch closesly, and here’s the three biggest for the Tigers to decipher.
Who Fills Will Putnam’s Shoes?
Center is a position that’s never easy to fill, but losing an All-ACC player and captain is a special task. He started Clemson’s last 27 games and now it’ll be a new face snapping Cade Klubnik the ball.
It all starts there: finding the perfect fit with Klubnik. There’s three names that jump out in the competition and that’s Ryan Linthicum, Trent Howard and Harris Sewell. Don’t be surprised if Matt Luke throws something else at the wall to see if it sticks.
What’s the Big Picture at WR?
It’s a foregone conclusion that Troy Stellato, Antonio Williams and Tyler Brown will all get a lot of reps early. The question lies in the depth and who else could step up. Adam Randall had a strong finish to the season and Cole Turner is back from injury, so that’s two quick names.
Five-star receiver Bryant Wesco enrolled early, and a strong spring could literally springboard him into a large part of the rotation. TJ Moore won’t be joining him until the summer, but these two could compete for starting jobs as freshmen.
Tyler Grisham has a wealth of options, it’s just a matter of putting all the pieces together. Misun “Tink” Kelley could just turn into the perfect wild card. It’s all to be seen.
Defensive Tackle Gets Confusing..
The arrest and suspension of DeMonte Capehart comes at an awful inconvenience, but sets up for an interesting storyline in the defensive tackle room if he’s not back during the spring.
A player like redshirt freshman Vic Burley will get extra reps, and potentially move up the depth chart. Peter Woods was the shoe-in starter, but the rest is up in the air. Payton Page and Tre Williams were the expected backups to Capehart and Woods, but now they’ll be battling for the starting spot with an absence.