CLEMSON — This is the time of year when the hype machine is at its best in football. This team has this guy and that guy, while this other team has this many starters back and that many new pieces and so on and so on.
It is why we love college football.
Some of the talk surrounding No. 6 Clemson has been about who the Tigers bring back on the defensive line. The two names heard the majority of the time are defensive tackle Peter Woods and defensive end T.J. Parker.
There is even talk about the potential of freshman defensive tackle Amare Adams and sophomore defensive tackle Vic Burley, every now and then. However, there is one guy no one mentions when talking about Clemson’s vaunted defensive front.
Who?
Defensive tackle DeMonte Capehart.
The super senior, who is back at Clemson for his sixth season, emerged in 2023 as one of Clemson’s most physical and most disruptive interior linemen. However, injuries forced him to miss three games last year and start just six.
Many figured he was off to the NFL and assumed he would not be on Clemson’s roster in 2025. In a way, he became Clemson’s lost defender.
It might be the first time in history that a 6-foot-4, 305-pound man was invisible on a championship caliber team, but that is what Capehart has become. Few even mention his name when describing the interior of Clemson’s defensive front, which when healthy he is as dominant and disruptive as any player the Tigers have up front.
Though few are talking about Capehart, the Clemson coaches know exactly who he is and what he is capable of. Head coach Dabo Swinney said Capehart checked into camp in great shape last week and is in elite condition.
“He is where we hoped he would be… He is strong and he’s practiced every day. He has not missed a single day,” Swinney said. “That has always been the big thing with Capehart, is availability, and just consistency in being available to really put it all together.”
Though this will be Capehart’s sixth season at Clemson, the Hartsville, S.C., native has played in just 45 games and recorded 550 snaps. He has averaged just 110 snaps per season.
In comparison, Parker has averaged 543 snaps per season in his first two years at Clemson.
“He has been here every day,” Swinney said, while knocking on a wooden table. “It has been really good so far.”