The younger brother of Atlanta Falcons All-Pro and former Clemson cornerback A.J. Terrell, Avieon Terrell has made a name for himself at Clemson and blossomed into one of the best players in college football at his position.

Avieon, now entering his junior season with the Tigers in 2025, was ranked by Pro Football Focus (PFF) among the top five returning cornerbacks in the country ahead of the upcoming college football campaign.

Avieon, a 2024 All-ACC selection, checked in at No. 4 on the list behind only Notre Dame’s Leonard Moore, Tennessee’s Jermod McCoy and Indiana’s D’Angelo Ponds .

Here’s what PFF’s Max Chadwick had to say about the younger Terrell entering the 2025 season:

“The younger brother of current Atlanta Falcons corner A.J. Terrell, Avieon is projected to follow in his brother’s footsteps from Clemson to the first round of the NFL Draft. The younger Terrell is a much better run-defender than his brother, placing fourth among all cornerbacks with a 90.7 run-defense grade this past season while his three forced fumbles tied for second. He’s still excellent in coverage as well, leading all Power Four corners with 14 forced incompletions in 2024.

“While not the biggest at just 5-foot-11, 180 pounds, Terrell plays with outstanding physicality for the position and has the speed to stick with receivers in man coverage.”

Terrell heads into the 2025 season having tallied 82 tackles (4.5 for loss), 19 pass breakups, three interceptions, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and a sack in 27 games (19 starts) over his first two seasons at Clemson.

Last season, the Atlanta native and Westlake High School product was credited with 64 tackles (4.5 for loss), 13 pass breakups, two interceptions, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and a sack across 14 games (all starts).

With that performance in 2024, Terrell became the first Clemson player under Dabo Swinney to finish a season with at least three forced fumbles and multiple interceptions and multiple fumble recoveries.

His 13 pass breakups tied the Clemson sophomore record shared previously by James Lott (1987) and Justin Miller (2003), while those 13 pass breakups were the most by a Clemson player in a season since 2014 (15, Garry Peters).

Terrell and the Tigers will kick off the 2025 season against the LSU Tigers at Memorial Stadium on Aug. 30.

Clemson is slated to face the No. 5 cornerback on PFF’s list of the top returning corners – Duke’s Chandler Rivers – when the Tigers and Blue Devils meet at Memorial Stadium on Nov. 1.