Gideon Davidson is beginning to show why he was one of the best running backs in the 2025 recruiting class.

Every major recruiting service had Davidson ranked among the five best backs in his class, and while he didn’t have a ton of opportunities to show it as a freshman, he’s had no shortage of them through the first four games of this season. And take advantage of them he has.

Two weeks ago against Georgia Southern, Davidson turned in a serviceable effort, rushing for 64 yards. Since then, he’s really set the tone in wins over North Carolina and Cal, and with each game, Dabo Swinney has seen the confidence grow in his young running back.

“He is pretty locked in. He’s had a couple of great weeks, for sure,” the head coach said. “It is amazing what confidence can do. Confidence is a powerful thing. I mean, it really is.”

Last week, Davidson went over the century mark for the first time, while also scoring his first touchdown. This week, he turned in his most productive game to date, rushing for 159 yards, while averaging an overly impressive 7.2 yards per carry. He also found the end zone two more times Friday night, including a 75-yarder late in the fourth quarter to put the game away.

Davidson led the charge in the 24-10 win over the Bears, as the team ran 255 yards and more than five yards per carry.

“You could just see he was close,” Swinney added. “He goes from getting his first touchdown, and now he’s got two (Friday night). Breaks another long run.”

With the Tigers breaking Tait Reynolds in at quarterback, the offense needs a strong running game for the freshman to lean on. And in each of the past two weeks, Davidson has given the team just that, rushing for 264 yards in the past two games.

That success the offense is seeing running the football is breeding confidence, and that strong ground game has given the team a renewed level of energy.

“It is a contagious thing,” Swinney said. “Guys feed off of that. Really proud of him.”

—photo courtesy of Clemson Athletics Communications