CLEMSON — If there is one position being questioned on the 2025 Clemson Tigers, it is the running back position.

Though the Tigers have enough talent to replace Phil Mafah, who now plays for the Dallas Cowboys, they definitely do not have the experience. The concerns about running back are warranted.

Mafah was forced to play the last six games of the season in obvious pain, and the Clemson running game suffered because of it. No one behind Mafah was even close to being ready at the time, as quarterback Cade Klubnik had to become the Tigers’ primary running back, which is never good for a running game at any level.

However, the concerns for Clemson’s run game should not last long.

Why?

The Tigers got some pretty good horses in the barn.

It starts with freshman Gideon Davidson. Several upper classmen raved about the talented freshman this past spring.

“His burst and his cuts. He is very confident and natural as a ballcarrier, as most running back are,” wide receiver Antonio Williams said. “But he was signed here for a reason. He was a highly touted guy around the country. I can see why.”

Williams is not the only person impressed with Davidson.

“The guy’s just natural,” Clemson offensive coordinator Garrett Riley said. “I mean, he’s a natural – natural balance, a cutter. He can be a violent runner. I think he’s got natural hands and can-do things where you’re spreading him out or things in the passing game. I just think he’s a very natural kid.”

Davidson signed with Clemson this past December and enrolled early in January. He was a unanimous four-star prospect regarded as one of the top running backs in the nation for the 2025 recruiting class.

A product of Liberty Christian Academy in Virginia, Davidson helped his team to an undefeated season and a second straight state championship in 2024. Davidson was credited with 2,054 rushing yards on 223 attempts (9.2-yard average) with 34 rushing touchdowns.

Davidson was named Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Virginia, as well as MaxPreps Virginia High School Football Player of the Year.

Before the spring was over, Davidson was already working with the second-team offense at times. He will head into fall camp behind Adam Randall and                                                                                             

“Just seeing him on the field, he just strikes me as a person that’s not really fazed by a whole lot,” Riley said. “I think he’s confident in himself, and just his demeanor is certainly a strength of his.”