During his Tuesday press conference, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney gave the latest injury update on a transfer defensive tackle.

On Monday night, Swinney confirmed that Kourtney Kelly is expected to make his season debut in Saturday’s game vs. Charleston Southern.

Swinney said Tuesday that Kelly is “doing really good,” and Swinney reiterated that Kelly currently remains on track to play Saturday. The West Georgia transfer has been recovering from a torn ACL suffered during a scrimmage in spring practice.

Swinney added that he’ll likely have a “more definitive” update on Kelly’s status for Saturday when he meets with the media following Wednesday’s practice.

“He’s doing really good. We expect him to play,” Swinney said Tuesday. “I think [Tuesday] and [Wednesday] will be the biggest – probably [Wednesday] night… after [Tuesday’s] practice and [Wednesday’s] practice, I’ll probably have a more definitive answer. But so far, so good.”

Kelly made his debut on Clemson’s depth chart released this week ahead of the Charleston Southern game, which is set to kick off at noon and will be televised on ACC Network.

The 6-foot-3, 290-pound junior is listed as a backup at one of the defensive tackle spots behind co-starters Champ Thompson and Amare Adams.

Kelly’s return would provide a much-needed boost to a Clemson interior defensive line that has been heavily depleted this season.

“They ramped him up last week,” Swinney added of Kelly. “He’s been getting some competitive work.

“So, that’s got a chance to be a good shot in the arm for us down the stretch.”

Kelly was one of many transfer portal acquisitions for Clemson on the defensive side of the ball this past offseason. He spent his first two college seasons at West Georgia, where he was credited with 17 tackles (seven for loss), four sacks and a fumble recovery in 11 games in 2025 after appearing in one game while redshirting in 2024.

Kelly played defensive end and linebacker at Carver High School in Columbus, Ga., where he was credited with 70 total tackles (29 for loss), 17 sacks and an interception as a senior.