Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney met with the media on Tuesday ahead of Saturday’s game vs. Duke at Memorial Stadium.

Swinney provided an update on sophomore offensive lineman Elyjah Thurmon, as well as sixth-year offensive lineman Walker Parks.

Thurmon has missed Clemson’s last three games after being injured in practice ahead of the UNC game on Oct. 4.

Thurmon was sidelined for the UNC, Boston College and SMU games due to an undisclosed injury. The 6-foot-4, 325-pounder was also unavailable against Georgia Tech on Sept. 13 after suffering a different injury earlier in the season. 

On Tuesday, Swinney said the Tigers hope to “get some good news” this week regarding Thurmon and his status moving forward.

“Elyjah, that’s been a big piece that we’ve been missing. … Hopefully we’ll get some good news on Elyjah this week as they re-evaluate him and what the rest of the season looks like for him,” Swinney said.

As for Parks, one of the few remaining super seniors, he has faced his share of adversity in recent years. In 2023, Parks suffered a season-ending injury in Week 2. He logged just 123 snaps that season.

Parks bounced back last year, starting all 14 games, while earning third-team All-ACC honors.

This year, Parks was injured during fall camp and missed the season opener vs. LSU. The 6-foot-5, 310-pounder returned to action with nine snaps vs. Troy, played all 63 snaps at Georgia Tech, 31 snaps vs. Syracuse, one snap at North Carolina, 27 snaps at Boston College, and one snap in Clemson’s most recent contest vs. SMU on Oct. 18.

Swinney noted that Parks is “never 100%” healthy considering his lengthy injury history, but Swinney thinks Parks is in a better spot from a health standpoint right now following the bye week.

“Walker has been available for a couple games, but really just available. Not really a 100% version of himself, so I feel like he’s going to be closer to that this week,” Swinney said. “I know Walker’s never 100%, but 85% of Walker is probably about as good as you’re going to get with him. A lot of things that he’s dealt with in his career.”

Saturday’s game vs. Duke is set to kick off at 12 p.m. and will be televised on ACC Network.