It’s not surprising Gage Cervenka approached the Clemson coaching staff the other day and asked if he could move to the offensive line, especially considering he would have a hard time moving into the Tigers’ two-deep rotation at defensive tackle with guys like Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence, Scott Pagano and Albert Huggins ahead of him on the depth chart.

It’s also not surprising he made the move considering Clemson’s reputation for moving players to positions they were not recruited to play and they end up starting, and some even move onto the NFL. The success stories are well documented – Vic Beasley, Eric Mac Lain, T.J. Green, Brandon Ford and Tyler Shatley to name a few.

“Sometimes that’s part of it, just getting the right seat on the bus,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said following Monday’s first of two practices. “We have had lots of guys. T.J. Green, we had to get him in the right spot. Sometimes you need to coach them for a year before you can really kind of figure that out.

“Vic Beasley, obviously, he was a tight end, he was a linebacker and we gave him a shot at defensive end and the rest is history. You get a lot of that. Mac Lain, we got him inside and he became a great player for us.”

Like Mac Lain, Cervenka will play inside as well. Swinney said they started today by playing the redshirt sophomore at guard. They also hope to move him to center as well.

“I don’t have any doubt that it is going to work out,” Swinney said. “Gage Cervenka is a heck of a football player. He would have played at D-tackle for us at some point. He was just going to have to be really patient over there.

“He is a redshirt freshman and he has five or six guys that are better than him right now. They’re in front of him. There are only so many reps. If he could get more reps, he could stay a D-tackle and he could be a good college D-tackle. But I think he has a chance to be a great offensive lineman. I think this is the right move for him, the team and his future. I really do.”

Cervenka will be wearing No. 62, which consequently was the same number worn by Shatley, who also came over after falling down the depth chart at defensive tackle.

“Gage is a tough player. His strengths as a football player are going to be accentuated on the OL,” Swinney said. “His strengths are; strength number one. Just raw strength, pushing and moving people and leverage, those are things that I think real really shine through. He just looks different over there. He looks like Shatley. He was a good D-tackle for us. He was a fourth-year junior before he moved to OL and Cervenka has four years left. So it is a totally different deal.

“Making that move now bodes well for his future. I would say had Shatley been on the offensive line for four years, he probably would have gotten drafted instead of being a free agent, but he is going on his third year and is vying for the starting job with (the Jacksonville) Jaguars.”