During his radio show Monday night, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney announced that sophomore offensive lineman Elyjah Thurmon will have surgery this week and will be out for the rest of the season.

On Tuesday during his press conference, Swinney spoke more about Thurmon’s injury, confirming it’s a shoulder injury.

Swinney said the Tigers didn’t want to shut Thurmon down, “but it’s mother nature. He’s gotta have surgery.”

Swinney added that his shoulder keeps “slipping out,” and thus he couldn’t get back to playing in games. On the bright side, as Swinney reiterated, Thurmon will be able to redshirt this year and will be a redshirt sophomore next year. He will have three years of eligibility left going into next season.

“We didn’t want to shut him down, but it’s mother nature. He’s gotta have surgery,” Swinney said. “They were hoping that maybe he could come back, but it keeps slipping out. They tried to go through the protocol to get him back to play, but he can’t do what he needs to do. We didn’t want to. It’s just where we are.

“The one positive aspect of it is we will be able to save his year. So, he’ll be a redshirt sophomore next year. So, that’s a positive aspect.”

Thurmon has missed Clemson’s last four games after being injured in practice ahead of the UNC game on Oct. 4. The 6-foot-4, 325-pounder was also unavailable against Georgia Tech on Sept. 13 after suffering a different injury earlier in the season. 

A Mississippi native who finished his prep career in Georgia before signing with the Tigers in 2024, Thurmon entered the 2025 season after previously playing 146 snaps from scrimmage over eight games (one start) in his freshman season in 2024.

Thurmon played 28 snaps in this year’s season opener against LSU, then played 51 snaps as Clemson produced both a 100-yard rusher (Adam Randall) and 100-yard receiver (Bryant Wesco Jr.) vs. Troy. After missing the Georgia Tech game, he returned to action against Syracuse and played 50 snaps as Clemson accrued 503 yards vs. the Orange.