After transitioning to wide receiver in the offseason, former Clemson quarterback Chris Denson got his first big opportunity of the season in last Saturday’s 41-13 loss to No. 4 Miami.

The Tigers called a Wildcat play for Denson during a key moment in the game. The play resulted in no gain on a pivotal third-and-2 from the Miami 18-yard line in the third quarter, leading to a failed fourth-down attempt on the next play.

After the turnover on downs, Miami went on a 14-play, 83-yard touchdown drive that ate up almost eight minutes of clock, taking a 24-6 lead and basically putting the game away in the process. It was a huge swing in the game.

Swinney acknowledged that it’s “fair game” to question the decision to insert the quarterback-turned-wide receiver into the backfield for a direct-snap Wildcat run at that crucial juncture of the contest.

“You can second-guess all that,” Swinney said of putting Denson in. “If we make it, it’s a great decision. If you don’t, it’s a bad decision. So, fair game.”

The play marked Denson’s first significant action of the 2026 season, after fading out of the quarterback race behind Christopher Vizzina and freshman Tait Reynolds earlier in the year.

Following Clemson’s spring game back in March, Swinney said that Denson — who entered the spring as the No. 2 quarterback – had a decision to make about whether he still wanted to be a quarterback or if he liked his chances playing another position. After the spring game, it was readily apparent that Denson wasn’t a factor in the QB race and a position change was likely coming for him.

Swinney addressed how Denson is adjusting to the position to change from quarterback to wide receiver, saying it’s been “a good transition,” but Denson just hasn’t had much opportunity to this point.

“It’s been good. He hasn’t had a lot of opportunity,” Swinney said. “We’ve played some tough games. That’s one thing — we haven’t been able to play a lot of guys just by nature of we’ve played a tough schedule, and by the nature of the games that we’ve had, we haven’t had a chance to play a bunch of guys. But he’s made a good transition. It’s a good move for him. But just hasn’t had a ton of opportunity right now.”

Denson, who enrolled at Clemson in January 2025, was ranked among the top 25 dual-threat quarterbacks in the country for the 2025 recruiting class by Rivals and ESPN.

A two-year starter for Plant City (Fla.) High School, Denson completed 63.6 percent of his career passes for 4,813 yards and 55 touchdowns with just 13 interceptions. He added 1,940 career rushing yards on 207 carries (9.4-yard average) and collected 16 rushing touchdowns with eight 100-yard rushing games over his career.

In his debut 2025 season with the Tigers, Denson played 11 offensive snaps over two games while redshirting. His most extensive action came in Clemson’s win over Furman last November, when he rushed six times for a team-high 106 yards and completed all four of his passes for 22 yards while accounting for two total touchdowns, one through the air and one on the ground.