Snap Counts, PFF Grades from Win Over Charleston Southern
By: Jason Priester October 21, 2026

CLEMSON — Clemson played its annual FCS opponent over the weekend, downing Charleston Southern 37-0 on Military Appreciation Day at Memorial Stadium.

It was an opportunity for the staff to get a lot of players some snaps before the Tigers sink their teeth back into ACC play this weekend.

Here is a look at the snap counts and PFF grades from the contest.

Quarterback:

  • Tair Reynolds: 67 (59.0)
  • Trent Pearman: 21 (56.3)
  • Brock Bradley: 4 (61.4)

It was another up-and-down performance for Reynolds, not that the freshman signal caller got much help from his wide receivers.

Running Back

  • Chris Johnson Jr.: 26 (70.9)
  • Jay Haynes: 26 (55.7)
  • Gideon Davidson: 25 (78.8)
  • Max Wilson: 14 (63.9)

This might have been Johnson’s strongest performance this season. Even so, Davidson continues to show why he leads the pack. Nice to see Wilson get some action.

Wide Receiver

  • T.J. Moore: 54 (49.3)
  • Bryant Wesco: 52 (62.8)
  • Tyler Brown: 48 (51.9)
  • Gordon Sellars: 23 (58.7)
  • JuJu Preston: 19 (58.8)
  • Tristan Smith: 18 (51.5)
  • Naeem Burroughs: 16 (77.4)
  • Clark Sanderson: 12 (57.3)
  • Chris Denson: 9 (54.5)
  • Cam Blivens: 8 (69.4)
  • Connor Salmin: 4 (58.9)
  • Jaylen Brown-Wallace: 2 (48.1)
  • Luke Stubbs: 2 (60.0)

The starting trio of wideouts did not have a very good afternoon. There’s just no nice way to say it. Moore, Wesco and Brown have to help Reynolds out more than they did on Saturday. We know Burroughs wasn’t quite as far along as many were expecting to start the season, but he was sharp in his limited snaps. Maybe he starts getting a little more play.

Tight End

  • Olsen Patt-Henry: 45 (53.9)
  • Christian Bentancur: 38 (81.2)
  • Logan Brooking: 19 (80.1)
  • Charlie Johnson: 5 (68.6)

Bentancur gets better and better as the season progresses.

Offensive Line

  • Brayden Jacobs: 69 (73.6)
  • Elyjah Thurmon: 69 (69.8)
  • Harris Sewell: 69 (69.0)
  • Easton Ware: 69 (63.8)
  • Collin Sadler: 69 (76.0)
  • Ian Reed: 25 (51.4)
  • Tucker Kattus: 23 (58.5)
  • Leo Delaney: 17 (59.3)
  • Gavin Blanchard: 13 (59.9)
  • Grant Wise: 13 (61.0)
  • Chapman Pendergrass: 12 (58.5)
  • Chance Barclay: 9 (59.0)
  • Braden Wilmes: 6 (52.0)
  • Carter Scruggs: 3 (57.6)
  • Bryce Smith: 2 (60.0)
  • Hayes Galloway: 2 (59.2)

This is a battle the starting five should have won, and for the most part they did. Still a lot of room for improvement.

Defensive End

  • Will Heldt: 21 (79.8)
  • London Merrit: 20 (63.3)
  • Caden Story: 17 (86.0)
  • Jahiem Lawson: 16 (49.4)
  • C.J. Wesley: 12 (67.6)
  • Michael Foster: 7 (72.3)
  • J.R. Hardrick: 3 (61.4)
  • Connor McFadden: 3 (68.2)
  • Ari Watford: 2 (60.1)

Story really played well. Also really liked what the freshman Foster had to show.

Defensive Tackle

  • Champ Thompson: 13 (69.5)
  • Andy Burburija: 12 (51.1)
  • Darien Mayo: 12 (71.7)
  • Vic Burley: 10 (66.2)
  • Amare Adams: 9 (71.6)
  • Kam Cody: 8 (73.6)
  • Kourtney Kelly: 7 (66.9)
  • Dietrick Pennington: 3 (66.9)
  • Makhi Williams-Lee: 2 (60.4)
  • Patrick Swygert: 2 (60.7)

Mayo continues to thrive in his new role. Nice to see Kelly make his Clemson debut. It was a small sample size, but there are some who believe he played a tad better than this grade might suggest.

Linebacker

  • Sammy Brown: 18 (83.4)
  • CJ Kubah-Taylor: 17 (77.5)
  • Fletcher Cothran: 16 (81.8)
  • Jeremiah Alexander: 11 (82.5)
  • Kobe McCloud: 10 (76.9)
  • Drew Woodaz: 7 (74.3)
  • Logan Anderson: 6 (88.6)
  • Brayden Reilly: 3 (73.7)

Kubah-Taylor has strung together some really solid performances in a reserve role. A lot to like from what we saw from Anderson, too. Overall, a strong day from this unit.

Corner/Nickel

  • Ashton Hampton: 25 (81.2)
  • Eliott Washington II: 25 (59.5)
  • Donovan Starr: 18 (53.3)
  • Branden Strozier: 16 (67.1)
  • Tink Kelley: 16 (63.7)
  • Marcell Gipson: 10 (67.8)
  • Myles Oliver: 3 (66.8)
  • Davion Joyner: 3 (60.0)

Hampton continues to look like a first-round talent.

Safety

  • Jerome Carter III: 23 (63.5)
  • Corey Myrick: 22 (68.6)
  • Ronan Hanafin: 19 (58.3)
  • Jakarrion Kenan: 18 (61.2)
  • Kylon Griffin: 17 (63.5)
  • Noah Dixon: 3 (61.9)
  • Kylen Webb: 3 (60.0)
  • Joe Wilkinson: 3 (60.0)
  • Tyler Connor: 3 (60.0)

Of those reserve safeties, Kenan was one who flashed.

Explanation of Grades

– Anything 85 and over is considered NFL caliber

– 84-79 is “very good”

– 78-68 is “above average”

– 60 is “average” and is where each grade begins, then goes up or down

– 59-50 is “below average”

– Below 50 is “poor”