Making a list of the best wide receivers during the Dabo Swinney era at Clemson was not easy.
First, I had to decide who was the best overall, which was difficult in its own right. Then I decided who was in the top five, which was not easy either. Finally, I had to decide on who deserved to be in more to round out the top 10.
It was not an easy task, as you can imagine. However, it was fun, and I think you guys will enjoy my list, as well as I will enjoy you telling me how wrong I am.
Here it goes.
10 Aaron Kelly (2005-’08)
When he finished his career in 2008, Aaron Kelly left Clemson as the ACC’s all-time leader in receptions (232). He was also Clemson’s career leader in yards (2,733) and in touchdown receptions (20). Though he was the first big-time wide receiver in Swinney’s head coaching career, Kelly still ranks third all-time at Clemson in career receptions and yards, while his touchdown receptions are tied for fifth. He was a first-team All-ACC performer in 2007 when he led the Tigers with a then single-season record 88 catches for 1,081 yards and a school-record 11 touchdowns in one season. He earned second-team all-conference honors in 2008.
9 Martavis Bryant (2011-’13)
From a pure talent standpoint, Bryant is the best player on this list. At 6-foot-4, 211 pounds, he had the skills to catch every pass thrown his way. He also had top end speed, as he ran away from his competition. However, Bryant was his own undoing. He never reached his full potential at Clemson or in the NFL, though he had his moments in both. But when he was on and he was focused, there was nobody better on the field. In his Clemson career, Bryant recorded 61 receptions for 1,354 yards and 13 touchdowns in his 37-game career, which included 13 starts. Bryant finished his college career ranked first in Clemson history in yards per reception (22.2) and tied for 10th in receiving touchdowns. He is still the career leader in yards per reception.
8 Amari Rodgers (2017-’20)
Rodgers has one of the best stories in Clemson history. He tore his ACL in the spring of 2019 but was back in the lineup full-time by the second game of the regular season. Rodgers had a great career at Clemson, finishing sixth all-time in receptions (181), ninth in touchdown receptions (15) and 13th in yards (2,144). His best season came in 2020 when he led the Tigers with 77 receptions for a team-best 1,020 yards and a team-high seven touchdown catches. For his efforts, Rodgers was a Biletnikoff Award Semifinalists and was a first-team All-ACC selection.
7 Justyn Ross (2018-’21)
Clemson fans will forever remember Justyn Ross for what he did in Clemson’s 2018 College Football Playoff run. Against Notre Dame, in the Cotton Bowl, he caught six passes for 148 yards and two touchdowns in helping the Tigers to a 30-3 win over the Irish. In the CFP National Championship Game, he had one touchdown and caught six passes for 153 yards in Clemson’s 44-16 victory over Alabama. In both games, he made jaw-dropping catches. Like Rodgers, Ross had to overcome some serious adversity when he learned in the spring of 2020, he had a congenital fusion condition of his neck and spine that required surgery. Though some thought he would never play football again, Ross returned to Clemson in 2021 and led the Tigers in receptions, yards and touchdown catches. He finished his Clemson career tied for fifth all-time in touchdown receptions with 20. He finished 10th all-time in receiving yards (2,379) and 11th in career receptions (158).
6 Hunter Renfrow (2015-’18)
Some will argue Renfrow should be higher on this list, and I am okay with that argument. He will forever be remembered for his game-winning touchdown catch in the 2016 CFP National Championship Game. Renfrow was amazing on the biggest of stages. He caught a 35-yard touchdown pass in the Orange Bowl in 2015 win over Oklahoma that sent the Tigers to the National Championship Game. He then grabbed seven passes for 88 yards and two more touchdowns in the title game. The next season, he was clutch again in the championship game, hauling in 10 passes for 92 yards and two more touchdowns, including the game-winner. Renfrow’s 186 career receptions rank fifth all-time at Clemson, while his 2,133 yards are 11th. His 15 touchdowns ranked ninth all-time.
5 Artavis Scott (2014-’16)
Though he played just three seasons, Scott broke and still holds the record for career receptions at Clemson with 245, which also ranks fifth all-time in the ACC. His 19 career touchdowns catches rank seventh in school history, while his 2,480 yards is eighth. Scott was a three-time All-ACC wide receiver. He caught at least one pass in 42 of his 43-game-career game. He had six games of at least 100 yards, which ranks fifth all-time in Clemson history. Scott’s best game came in his freshman season when he hauled in seven passes for a career-high 185 yards and two touchdowns against rival South Carolina. Those marks are still the best ever for a Tiger against the Gamecocks. He followed that up with eight receptions for 114 yards and a touchdown in Clemson’s win over Oklahoma in the Russell Athletic Bowl. Scott’s best season at Clemson came in 2015, when he led the Tigers with 93 receptions for a team-best 901 yards and six touchdowns.
4 Tee Higgins (2017-’19)
Higgins had perhaps the most impressive back-to-back seasons in Clemson history. The talented wideout produced one of the school’s most impressive sophomore campaigns in 2018 in his first full year as a starter and followed that with a spectacular junior campaign to place himself among the top receivers in Clemson history. He finished his three-year career with 135 career receptions for 2,448 yards, which ranks ninth in school history. His 27 career receiving touchdowns are tied for the most in school history and tied for ninth-most in ACC history. When Higgins left Clemson after the 2019 season, he left as the only player in school history to record double-digit touchdown receptions in consecutive seasons. He led the Tigers with 12 touchdown receptions in 2018 and 13 in 2019. Higgins was a two-time All-ACC selection, including a first-team selection in 2019, when he also earned second-team All-American honors.
3 Mike Williams (2013-’16)
After he ran into the goal post in the 2015 season opener against Wofford, no one thought they would ever see Mike Williams play football again, much less become the No. 7 overall draft pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. However, Williams overcame a fracture in his neck to have one of the greatest seasons in Clemson history in 2016. The 6-foot-4, 220-pound receiver caught everything thrown to him, including some amazing catches in the 2017 CFP National Championship Game against Alabama. Williams finished the 2016 season with 98 catches for 1,361 yards and 11 touchdowns. His 98 catches that year rank second all-time for a season, while his 1,361 yards rank third. In the 2017 CFP National Championship Game, he hauled in eight passes for 94 yards, including the first pass of the game-winning drive, which got things started for the Tigers. Williams was a first-team All-ACC selection in 2016 and earned second-team All-American honors. In his four years at Clemson, he compiled 177 receptions (7th all-time) for 2,727 yards (4th all-time) and 21 touchdowns (4th all-time).
Co. 1 DeAndre Hopkins (2010-’12)
Hopkins, a.k.a. Nuk, had one of the greatest seasons in Clemson history in 2012. In his final year as a Tiger, Hopkins grabbed 82 passes out of the air for 1,405 yards and an ACC record 18 touchdowns. His 1,405 receiving yards at the time were a Clemson record. For his efforts that year, Hopkins was a first-team All-ACC selection and garnered second-team All-American honors. He had 206 receptions for 3,020 yards and 27 touchdowns in his career. He finished his Clemson career first in school history in receiving yards, first in receiving touchdowns, first in 100-yard receiving games (12), and second in receptions. He became the second player in ACC history to total at least 50 receptions as both a freshman and sophomore and had at least one reception in each of his last 36 games, tied for the school record. He is the only Tiger in history with multiple 100-yard receiving performances in bowl games. In three-bowl games, he had 32 receptions for 403 yards and three touchdowns. Hopkins’ 206 receptions still ranks fourth in Clemson history, while his 3,020 yards rank second. His 27 touchdown receptions have been tied by two other players. The most memorable game in Hopkins’ career came in his last. In the 2012 Chick-fil-A Bowl he had a game-high 13 receptions for a game-high 191 yards and two touchdowns against No. 7 LSU. His 13 receptions tied his own school record, which he set or tied school bowl game records in all three categories. Clemson fans will always remember his sliding grab of a Tajh Boyd pass for 26 yards on fourth-and-16 from the Clemson 14-yard line on the game-winning drive.
Co. 1 Sammy Watkins
Watkins is perhaps the most explosive player in Clemson history, evidenced by his first career reception, and the second play of the 2011 season, when he took a simple screen pass against Troy and turned it into a touchdown. Watkins arguably had the greatest career of any Clemson wideout, as he tallied 240 receptions for 3,391 yards and 27 touchdowns. His career yards are still first in Clemson history, while his touchdowns tied Hopkins’ mark. His total number of catches now ranks second in Clemson history. He finished his college career first in school history in receptions, first in receptions per game (6.7), first in receiving yards, first in receiving yards per game (94.2), first in 100-yard receiving games (15). Watkins burst onto the scene in college football in 2011, as he set a Clemson freshman record with 82 catches for 1,219 yards and 12 touchdowns. After an injury filled sophomore campaign, Watkins returned to old form in 2013 and earned first-team All-American honors, again. One of three finalists for the Biletnikoff Award, Watkins’ set a new Clemson record for receptions (101) and yards (1,464). He also hauled in 12 touchdowns. He led the team in receptions, receptions of 20+ yards (19), receiving yards, touchdowns, kickoff return yards, and all-purpose yards. Watkins is first in school history for a season in receptions, first in receptions per game (7.7), first in receiving yards, first in receiving yards per game (112.6), first in 100-yard receiving games (8) and tied for second in receiving touchdowns. Like Hopkins, Watkins saved his best game for last. He had a school-record 16 receptions for a school-record 227 yards and two touchdowns in the Tigers’ win over No. 6 Ohio State in the 2014 Orange Bowl.
