The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman has released his annual “Freaks List,” laying out the 101 strongest, fastest and most physical players in college football.
Clemson junior defensive tackle Peter Woods landed at No. 5 on the Freaks List:
After a freshman All-American season in 2023, the Alabama native emerged as a bigger force last season, making 32 tackles, 8.5 TFLs and three sacks while splitting time between DE and DT. The 6-3 20-year-old is quite the physical Freak, ranking in the top five on the team in muscle mass when he arrived as a true freshman in 2023. His latest body composition scans prior to camp showed that 240 of his 310 pounds are lean muscle mass. He’s a rare combination of power and speed for a 300-plus pounder.
This offseason, Woods bench pressed 490 pounds and did 34 reps of 225. He squatted 700 pounds and power cleaned 385, ran a 4.86 40-yard dash and vertical jumped 33 inches. Don’t be surprised if Woods ends up as a top-5 NFL Draft pick when he leaves Clemson. He’s special.
Peter Woods has spent a lot of the offseason working on his body, and that work is clearly paying off. After missing three games with an injury in 2024, Woods has been determined to do everything he can to stay healthy as a junior this season.
“This year has mostly been a nutritional thing, just getting my body right,” Woods said at the 2025 ACC Football Kickoff in Charlotte. “I can use my whole toolbox, my whole skillset. Doing the necessary things needed to stay healthy throughout the season.”
Woods enters the upcoming season with 59 tackles (11.0 for loss), 3.0 sacks and two forced fumbles in 23 games (12 starts) over his first two seasons at Clemson.
Ohio State wideout Jeremiah Smith tops Feldman’s Freaks List at No. 1.
Clemson is scheduled to face a number of other players on the Freaks List in 2025, including South Carolina receiver Nyck Harbor (ranked No. 3), LSU defensive tackle Dominick McKinley (No. 6), Georgia Tech defensive lineman Jordan van den Berg (No. 18), LSU receiver Chris Hilton (No. 32), South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers (No. 33), FSU wide receiver Micahi Danzy (No. 68), Duke linebacker Nick Morris (No. 69) and Boston College left tackle Jude Bowry (No. 98).