Old, New Players Making Plays in Practice

CLEMSON — Clemson has completed just two days of fall camp, but some new names and an old one are already making a few splashes for the Tigers.

Following Friday’s practice at the Jordan Family Practice Fields, Adam Randall mentioned a couple of highlights from the two-and-half-hour session.

“Offensively, Gideon Davidson is coming along really well,” the Clemson running back said. “Tristan (Smith) is a really long receiver. He just makes plays out there. He had a couple of one-handed grabs today.

“Tyler Brown is back. He is a hundred percent. Everybody talks about the top three guys, but we have really elite depth at receiver.”

The Tigers’ top three receivers back from last year are Antonio Williams, Bryant Wesco and T.J. Moore. They combined for 161 catches for 2,263 yards and 21 touchdowns last season.

But it does not end there.

Brown caught 52 passes for 531 yards and 4 TDs on his way to being named a Freshman All-American in 2023. He spent most of last year injured and was redshirted.

Smith transferred to Clemson from Southeast Missouri State last January after he hauled in 76 passes for 934 yards and 6 TDs. He practiced in the spring with Clemson and caught five passes for 135 yards, including a 75-yard catch-and-run in the Orange & White Spring Game.

Davidson, a true freshman, also came to Clemson in January and practiced this past spring, while moving himself up the depth chart with a solid 15 practices. He has been talked about by just about everyone in the football program due to the number of big plays he has made in practice.

Ranked as the nation’s third best running back by ESPN coming out of high school and a consistent top 100 player, Davidson ran for 7,438 yards and 118 touchdowns.

“Gideon Davidson is still learning, but he has the skills to be an elite running back,” Randall said.