Clemson starting Tiger nickelback Corian Gipson has started each of the Tigers’ first three games this season. But after playing 54 snaps in the opener at LSU and then 45 in the home opener vs. Georgia Southern, Gipson was only on the field for two snaps in last Saturday’s game vs. North Carolina.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney revealed during his Tuesday press conference that Gipson is “banged up” and was “really limited throughout the week” of practice heading into the UNC game.

“He was banged up,” Swinney said. “He tried [to play vs. UNC], and just wasn’t quite ready. He was really limited throughout the week and just had a little tweak, and didn’t really practice much, but thought he was going to be able to play in the game. I think he went a series or so, and he just wasn’t confident enough that he could do what he needed to do.”

Swinney was asked what Gipson’s status is for Friday’s game at Cal. It remains to be seen if he will play against the Golden Bears.

“[He’s] working his way [back this week],” Swinney said. “He’s still kind of working his way there.”

The 6-foot-1, 195-pound junior collected four tackles at LSU before adding five tackles vs. Georgia Southern.

After playing 14 defensive snaps over four games while redshirting in 2024, Gipson was credited with 14 tackles and three pass breakups in 189 defensive snaps over 12 games (three starts) in 2025 and earned Clemson’s starting Tiger nickelback role down the stretch.

A native of Fort Worth, Texas, Gipson came to Clemson as a four-star prospect and top-100 national talent in the 2024 recruiting class, but an ACL tear early in his senior year of high school set him back.

Friday’s game against Cal at Cal Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif., is set to kick off at 10:30 p.m. ET and will be televised on ESPN.