CLEMSON –  Clemson wide receivers Antonio Williams and Tyler Brown have spent the last three years playing a kind of football tag — trading time battling injuries and shining for the Tigers’ offense.

Williams, a senior from Irmo, S.C., was the Tigers’ top target last season, hauling in 95 receptions for 904 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns en route to Clemson’s ACC Championship win and an appearance in the College Football Playoff.

But in this year’s season opener against LSU, Williams abruptly left the first quarter with a hamstring injury, leaving the Tigers without one of their most reliable playmakers. Head coach Dabo Swinney believes that this loss has altered his team’s offensive rhythm.

“(Williams) is our best player,” he said.  “It’s just that simple. He’s the best player we got. He’s special. He’s seasoned, he’s crafty, smart. I mean, he’s a special dude. So, certainly doesn’t help us that he’s not out there.” 

In his first semester at Clemson in 2022, three years before his hamstring injury, Williams showed off his “special” ability for the first time in an orange and purple uniform, leading the Tigers with 56 receptions, 604 yards, and four touchdowns. Within six months of arriving on campus, William earned Freshman All-American honors and cemented himself as a cornerstone of Clemson’s offense.

One season later, however, he was sidelined with an ankle injury for the majority of the season.  In his absence, true freshman Tyler Brown emerged as Clemson’s next breakout receiver, leading the Tigers with 52 receptions for 531 yards and four touchdowns. 

Just as Brown, a Greenville, S.C., native hit his stride, it was his turn to battle a foot injury that took him out for much of the 2024 season. Williams, in the meantime, regained his status as a pillar of the Tigers’ offense, dominating receiving metrics for the second time in his career.

In the third installment of the trade-off after Williams’ hamstring injury, Brown has again stepped into a leadership role.

“These first couple games, the positive has been Tyler has been able to really make some plays and really get back in the rhythm of  playing having been out last year,” Swinney said.

In the first two games of his junior season, Brown notched 88 receiving yards, including a 45-yard reception, which is currently the longest of Clemson’s season. Despite missing Williams, who head coach Dabo Swinney called the Tigers’ “best player,” Brown has adopted the “next-man-up” mentality.

“Of course we miss my brother (Williams),” Brown said. “He’s one of the best in the nation and I still believe that. I still stand on that and we definitely feel that. But at the end of the day, nobody feels sorry for us and we got to have the next man up mentality. So, everyone’s preparing like they’re ready to go run out there first and that’s how we prepare.”

Brown believes his time with an injury, separated from the field, has given him the maturity and leadership skills to step up to be the “next man.”

“I’ve been able to lead in different ways, being more vocal to my younger guys, some of the older guys too,” he said. “I’ve become more of a vocal leader in that wide receiver room and taking on that role very well.”

Brown will have to establish a new level of leadership this weekend, as the Tigers will play the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in a hostile Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta. Williams is still listed as day-to-day for the conference matchup.