The 2024 NFL draft is just a couple months away, and there are multiple Clemson Tigers that will be very coveted over the first couple days. It’s a defense-heavy draft class coming from Dabo Swinney’s program, and teams are holding it in high regard.
As the NFL Scouting Combine approaches, The Athletic’s Dane Brugler ranked the top 100 draft prospects and three Tigers made the list. Cornerback Nate Wiggins earned the highest mark after his first-team All-ACC season, coming in at No. 25.
Wiggins’ mix of length speed bodes well for his NFL career, and he’s proved to be reliable on an island. He made a living doing so as a Tiger.
With his athletic profile, Wiggins moves with quiet, controlled feet/hips to seamlessly transition out of breaks and accelerate to top gear (allowed only one catch of 20-plus yards last season, on 41 targets).
His thin frame is a concern, and he needs to improve his consistency as a run defender, but he shows tremendous effort in pursuit and had two chase-down forced fumbles that saved touchdowns in 2023 (vs. Miami and North Carolina).
Defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro was the next former Clemson player ranked. He added an All-ACC season to his resume, finishing the 2023 season with eight tackles for loss and a career-high five sacks.
At 6-foot-4, 290 pounds, he’s ready for the professional physicality and Brugler was impressed enough by his development to slot him at No. 52. There’s still work to be done, but his raw potential is evident.
As a pass rusher, Orhorhoro doesn’t have a lot of clean wins on tape, but he converts speed to power and plays with the quickness and balance to become more disruptive. Against the run, he is hard to reach because of his lateral quickness to move up and down the line, and he does a great job as a two-gapper stacking, locating and re-leveraging.
The stat sheet is underwhelming, but Orhorhoro has shown gradual improvements each year since he started playing football as a high school junior.
Last but not least was linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr., and this might come as a surprise to Clemson fans. He was the engine of the Tigers defense and earned All-American honors for a second-straight season as a Butkus Award finalist.
Trotter finished his last two seasons season with 187 tackles, 28.5 for loss, 12 sacks, three forced fumbles, 14 pass breakups and four interceptions. Yeah, he was that dominant and scored twice.
The difference is the NFL game graded linebackers differently. Still, his physicality and instincts earned him No. 99 on the list, with potential to become an impressive linebacker in the league.
Trotter is the son of a physically imposing former Pro Bowl linebacker, and the apple didn’t fall too far from the tree. He brings an active play style and thumping intent, although he needs to better use his hands to maintain block separation.
His lower-body tightness can be exposed by shifty runners, and his coverage deficiencies will be tough to overcome. But Trotter will be a great fit for a team looking for an instinctive hammer with pedigree and toughness.