Nothing made Dabo Swinney prouder in his postgame press conference following Clemson’s national championship victory over Alabama than to remind the media that his five-star quarterback threw the game-winning touchdown pass to his walk-on wide receiver.
Of course the play was a two-yard touchdown toss from Deshaun Watson to Hunter Renfrow with one-second left as the Tigers beat Alabama, 35-31, in the College Football Playoff Championship Game.
“To me, that moment, that epitomizes what our program is all about,” Swinney said. “You’ve got the five-star quarterback throwing the game-winning touchdown to the walk-on wideout, and that’s the epitome of our team. It doesn’t matter if you’re the five-star guy or the walk-on … the best player plays.
“You earn it. There’s no entitlement in our program. You earn it. Period! Everybody knows that.”
Clemson’s run to the 2016 National Championship actually began in 2012 when center Jay Guillermo, defensive tackle Carlos Watkins and cornerback Cordrea Tankersley signed their Letters-of-Intent to play at Clemson. The three were all rated as four-star prospects coming out of high school, with Guillermo rated as the No. 1 center in the country.
The three did not become major contributors on the team until their fourth year on the team. As the three oldest players on the 2016 team, they did not become full-time starters until the 2015 season. By then, all three made the most of it and ended their careers as two-time All-ACC performers.
Overall, the 2016 National Champions were littered with five- and four-star talent. Of the 22 starters, four were rated as five-star players, while 13 were rated as four-stars coming out of high school. Three were three stars and one was a walk-on.
The class mostly represented on the team is from the 2013 squad. Overall, eight members of the 2013 class were starters on Clemson’s national championship squad. Of those eight, three were three-star players – tight end Jordan Leggett, cornerback Ryan Carter and safety Jadar Johnson.
Leggett became an All-American tight end and Mackey Award Finalist. Johnson earned First-Team All-ACC honors and led the Tigers with five interceptions this past season. Carter has become a solid starter for Brent Venables defense as well.
But do not get it wrong, the Tigers five-star talent lived up to their expectations, too.
Watson, a member of the 2014 Class, became the best quarterback in the country, winning the Davey O’Brien and Manning Awards in back-to-back years. He went 32-3 as a starter and set just about every Clemson and ACC passing records imaginable. He is considered by just about everyone as the best player in the country the last two years.
Mitch Hyatt, a 2015 Class member, became a starter at Clemson from Day 1 and is considered one of the best left tackles in the game.
Christian Wilkins, also from the 2015 Class, has been outstanding no matter where he lines up. He had over eight tackles as a defensive tackle as a true freshman, plus caught a pass on a fake punt in the Orange Bowl that season. In 2016, because of an injury to Austin Bryant in preseason camp, Wilkins moved out to defensive end and became an All-American.
Then there was this past season’s freshman wonder. Dexter Lawrence, the No. 2 overall player coming out of high school, was disruptive all season on the defensive line as he finished the season with 79 tackles and 10.5 tackles for loss. He was First-Team All-ACC as well as the conference’s Defensive Freshman of the Year.
Even with all of that star power, and they all played a major role on the team, it was a walk-on by the name of Hunter Renfrow that sealed the deal for the Tigers, and brought Clemson back its first national championship in 35 years.
“I’m just telling you, that’s really truly what our program is – it epitomizes just a microcosm of our team and our program,” Swinney said. “It’s really special when you have that type of situation. You know, these guys all buy in, and I’m really happy for Hunter.”
2016 starters
Offense
Pos. # Player
LT 75 Mitch Hyatt: 5 star; rated No. 2 OT in the country and No. 16 overall by Rivals in Class of 2015
LG 51 Taylor Hearn: 4 star; rated No. 15 player in SC by Rivals in Class of 2014
C 57 Jay Guillermo: 4 star; rated No. 1 center in the nation and No. 89 overall by ESPN in Class of 2012
RG 55 Tyrone Crowder: 4 star; rated No. 5 OG in the nation and No. 125 overall by ESPN in Class of 2013
RT 76 Sean Pollard: 4 star; rated No. 129 overall player by Scout, 10th best OL by ESPN in Class of 2016
TE 16 Jordan Leggett: 3 star; rated No. 7 TE overall and the 76 player in Florida by ESPN in Class of 2013
WR 7 Mike Williams: 4 star; rated as No. 2 player in SC and 180th overall by 247 Sports in Class of 2013
QB 4 Deshaun Watson: 5 star; No. 1 dual-threat QB in the nation, No. 16 overall by ESPN in Class of 2014
RB 9 Wayne Gallman: 4 star; No. 18 RB in the country, No. 217 overall by 247 Sports in Class of 2013
WR 13 Hunter Renfrow: Former walk-on. Came to Clemson and redshirted in 2014
WR 3 Artavis Scott: 4 star; No. 68 player overall, No. 10 WR in the nation by 247 Sports in Class of 2014
Defense
Pos. # Player
DE 42 Christian Wilkins: 5 star; No. 4 DT in the nation, No. 21 overall by Rivals in Class of 2015
DT 94 Carlos Watkins: 4 star; No. 55 overall and No. 7 DL in the nation by 247 Sports in Class of 2012
DT 90 Dexter Lawrence: 5 star; No. 2 overall player by Rivals in the Class of 2016
DE 99 Clelin Ferrell: 4 star; No. 7 DE and No. 115 overall by 247 Sports in the Class of 2015
SLB 6 Dorian O’Daniel: 4 star; No. 40 overall player in the country by Rivals in the Class of 2013
MLB 34 Kendall Joseph: 4 star; rated No. 18 ILB in the country by ESPN in the Class of 2014
WLB 10 Ben Boulware: 4 star; rated No. 78 overall, No. 3 ILB by ESPN in the Class of 2013
CB 31 Ryan Carter: 3 star; rated No. 31 corner, No. 61 player in Georgia by ESPN in the Class of 2013
SS 18 Jadar Johnson: 3 star; rated as No. 80 athlete in the nation by ESPN in the Class of 2013
FS 23 Van Smith: 4 star; rated as No. 9 overall player in NC by Max Preps in the Class of 2015
CB 25 Cordrea Tankersley: 4 star No. 25 athlete in the nation by 247 Sports in the Class of 2012
Starters by recruiting class
2012: 3 – All three are 4 stars
2013: 8 – Three 3 stars, 5 four stars
2014: 5 – One 5 star, 3 four stars, 1 walk-on
2015: 4 – Two 5 stars, 2 four stars
2016: 2 – One 5 star, 1 four star
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