Clemson defensive tackle Vic Burley is playing some catch-up after his suspension, according to head coach Dabo Swinney.
On Wednesday, during his final media availability ahead of Saturday’s game against North Carolina, Swinney updated Burley’s progress for Saturday.
Swinney acknowledged that the 6-foot-4, 315-pound senior is working to catch up in terms of his conditioning after missing time away from the team.
“Oh yeah. Oh yeah. Yeah, for sure,” Swinney said.
Burley missed the season opener at LSU on Sept. 5 while serving his suspension and did not play in last Saturday’s game vs. Georgia Southern, but is expected to be available for the Tigers’ matchup against North Carolina this Saturday at Memorial Stadium (12 p.m., ESPN).
Swinney was asked how Burley has looked in practice this week.
“He’s got work to do,” Swinney said with a laugh. “He’s got work to do. But he’s working.”
Burley was recently reinstated from his indefinite suspension following his late August arrest on public disorderly conduct charges. Swinney said earlier this week that the veteran defensive tackle “paid the price” for his off-the-field mistake and showed that he deserved to rejoin the team, taking full ownership and accountability for his actions.
Swinney noted that while Burley made a “dumb decision” and “needed a wake-up call,” he has earned his opportunity to rejoin his teammates.
With this being his fourth season in the program, Burley was expected to take on a much larger role this season. However, he missed a significant amount of time during fall camp, even before the arrest.
Over his first three seasons, Burley is credited with 24 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss and a pass breakup, having logged 267 snaps over 21 games.
Burley arrived at Clemson as a five-star and top-50 national recruit in the 2023 class, per 247Sports. During his final season at Warner Robins (Ga.) High School, he earned 5A Defensive Player of the Year honors. He was highly productive in 47 career games at the prep level, recording 188 tackles, 55 tackles for loss and 22 sacks for -111 yards. He also had an impressive 138 quarterback hurries.
When Burley arrived at Clemson, expectations were extremely high due to his high school pedigree. However, injuries derailed his freshman campaign, and he missed the entire season. The following season, he logged less than 100 snaps. Last season, Burley did appear in all 13 games, recording 15 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss and a pass breakup in 175 defensive snaps.
He did flash back in March during the annual Orange and White spring game, finishing with three tackles, 2.5 sacks and a pass breakup.
