Clemson’s true freshmen receivers have a lot to learn after enrolling early in January, but head coach Dabo Swinney says the Tigers “hit” on the “elite” trio of wideouts they signed in the 2026 recruiting class — Naeem Burroughs, Gordon Sellars III and Connor Salmin.

Following Wednesday’s spring practice, Swinney gave his early evaluation of those receivers as they go through spring ball with the Tigers for the first time.

Burroughs (pictured above), Salmin and Sellars all rank among the top five players signed by Clemson, and all three have legit speed.

“A lot to learn. A lot of details. When you got a lot of thinking going on, it can be a little sloppy at times,” Swinney said. “But just who they are – big, strong, athletic. Really, really fast. All three of them can really, really run.

“We hit on them. It’s an elite class. Again, they’re not elite college football players yet, but they’re elite talent. So, we’ve got a lot of coaching to do. They’ve got a lot of developing to do between now and September.”

Swinney noted that Burroughs, Salmin and Sellars are “getting a huge opportunity” to see a lot of action this spring, as T.J. Moore had a lower-body surgery after last season and is limited early in spring, much like fellow receiver Cole Turner. Meanwhile, Bryant Wesco Jr. is participating in spring practice, but in a limited capacity as well following a serious back injury last October.

“That’s three very experienced players [Moore, Wesco, Turner], so they’re getting all those reps,” Swinney said of the freshmen receivers. “So, it’s good for them. In the end, it’ll make us all better, and we’ll get Cole and T.J. back a little bit more toward the back part of spring.”

Salmin spent his first three prep seasons at Woodgrove in Purcellville, Va. before playing his senior season at Bullis School in Potomac, Md. The four-star prospect made an instant impact in his lone season at Bullis, earning first-team IAC and IAC Offensive Player of the Year honors while recording 57 receptions for 1,013 yards with 14 receiving touchdowns, including two touchdowns in Bullis’ defeat of Georgetown Prep in the IAC title game.

Sellars, a two-time all-state and all-conference honoree, tallied 2,419 receiving yards and 29 touchdowns on 133 career receptions at Providence Day School in Charlotte, N.C. As a senior, the four-star prospect produced 59 receptions for 917 yards and 15 touchdowns while helping guide Providence Day to a perfect 13-0 record and the third state title of his career.

Burroughs, another highly touted four-star recruit, was ranked by Rivals as the nation’s No. 42 overall prospect and the eighth-best wide receiver in his class. He entered the December early signing period with 163 career receptions for 3,614 yards with 49 receiving touchdowns, including 47 receptions for 1,107 yards and 15 receiving touchdowns in his senior season.

“Salmin can fly,” Swinney said. “We knew that. But when you’re thinking, you don’t play fast. [Sellars] – long, really twitchy for a big guy. I saw [former Clemson WR] Charone Peake today. [Sellars] looks like Charone Peake running around out there in No. 19. Charone was over here meeting with our staff. He’s a coach at Dorman [High School] now. Really can run. Great ball [skills]. He’s flashed a bunch with just making some really extended catches. He plays long. He’s a big, long kid, but he plays big and long. I love that about him. Same thing, though, a lot to learn. And then Naeem is just a special football player. He can do anything. He can play anywhere. Can really run. He’s a lot bigger than I thought he was. He’s really developed, lower body.”

As those three newcomers continue to learn and get acclimated to Clemson’s offense and the college game over the course of spring ball and then in fall camp, Swinney hopes they’ll be “confident and ready to go play” by the time the 2026 regular season rolls around.

“All three of them — just learning, learning, learning,” Swinney said. “The installation is piling up on them. Alignments. It’s a lot going on. But that’s what spring’s all about, is to throw as much at them, see what sticks and then what doesn’t, grab it back up and let’s throw it back at them again. And then hopefully by the time we get to September, we’ve got some guys that are confident and ready to go play.”

–Clemson Athletic Communications contributed to this story