CLEMSON – Wes Goodwin is shorthanded at linebacker heading into the 2023 season with six players in the rotation. Good news for him is that group is young and very talented.

One of the newcomers to the unit is freshman Dee Crayton. A three-star prospect from Georgia, he joined the program in January and is now acclimated to the Clemson program.

Already 225 pounds at 6-foot-2, Crayton has the strength to make an impact early as a Tiger. With almost eight months under Crayton’s belt in the program, fellow linebacker Wade Woodaz talked about what he brings to the table after practice Tuesday.

“Dee is extremely flashy and quick,” Woodaz said. “That’s the main thing, he’s fast, he can move downhill very quick but he’s also like a very hard worker. He ain’t gonna duck away from putting in work so that’s a good trait to have especially when people leave in the future.”

It’s a foregone conclusion that Clemson will go through a changing of the guard at linebacker after the 2023 season. Both Barrett Carter and Jeremiah Trotter Jr. are expected to be first-round picks in next year’s draft, and they’re the two biggest contributors in the unit.

Woodaz said Crayton will quickly become a leader, and that’s key to his improvement. Talking about the freshmen as a whole, he said they’re all intuitive and very willing to ask questions.

This is an extension of what the veterans have been saying all around the roster and it’s a great sign for these first-year players to be so amped to learn and produce early as Tigers.

Crayton can be one of those early contributors, and the need for depth at linebacker opens up a lot of opportunity for him as a freshman. All that’s left is to see it on the field come Labor Day night and beyond.