Clemson defensive coordinator Tom Allen recently named Polo Anderson as one freshman who has stood out during spring ball.

Allen isn’t the only one who has been impressed by Anderson — a former consensus four-star and top-150 national prospect — during his first spring with the Tigers.

Following Saturday’s Orange & White Spring Game at Memorial Stadium, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney spoke highly of Anderson, the 6-foot-2, 180-pound true freshman safety from nearby Dorman High School.

“He’s got a lot to learn, for sure. But catches your eye every day,” Swinney said. “I don’t know that there’s a day that went by that I didn’t notice [No.] 11. He’s long, he’s athletic. He can really run. He’s a tough kid. He cares.

“We got us a good one.”

How has Anderson, who signed with Clemson last December before enrolling early in January, progressed throughout the spring?

“He’s a young player,” Swinney said. “He’s not where [junior safety Corey Myrick] or [junior safety Jerome Carter III] or [senior safety Ronan Hanafin] are, or [redshirt senior safety Kylon Griffin], just from a knowledge standpoint. He’s a high school kid in his first semester of college. He’s gonna get better and he’s gonna learn.”

While Anderson still has plenty to learn, Swinney expects him to be ready to contribute by the time the 2026 season rolls around.

Swinney likened where Anderson is right now to where now-junior linebacker Sammy Brown was as a true freshman in his first spring at Clemson. Brown had “a lot to learn” at the time, but eventually went on to earn freshman All-America honors for his debut season in 2024 in which he was also named ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year.

“Sammy Brown wasn’t very good his first spring,” Swinney recalled. “I thought he was pretty average. I came out of the spring going, ‘He’s got a lot to learn.’ … I’m like, ‘Hey man, you don’t learn what to do, you’re just gonna be a talented guy on the sideline.’ But by the time we got to the end of August, Sammy Brown was, ‘OK, he’s gonna be ready to help us.’

“So, I would say the same thing about Polo. If he does what he needs to do from just a slowing-the-game-down standpoint, formation recognition, alignments, calls, adjustments – all that stuff that happens really, really fast at that position — he’ll be able to help our team. Certainly special teams and things like that. But he’s flashed every single day.”

A two-time all-state and three-time all-region pick, Anderson was credited with 265 tackles, 25 tackles for loss, seven sacks, five forced fumbles, five pass breakups and four interceptions during his prep career. He also blocked four career kicks and scored three career touchdowns, including one on a 58-yard pick-six against Blythewood in the second round of the Class 5A playoffs as a senior.

Anderson recorded a career-high 95 tackles (eight for loss), three forced fumbles, two sacks, a pick-six and a fumble recovery as a senior en route to being recognized as Region 2-AAAAA Defensive Player of the Year and being named as one of five finalists for Mr. Football in South Carolina.