Top 10 fall camp story lines for Clemson football in 2017
Coming off Clemson's first national championship since 1981, the Tigers kick off fall camp Thursday. Dabo Swinney’s team isn’t without question marks, though, as it begins its title defense.
Catching Kelly
Kelly Bryant enters this month as the leader to replace Deshaun Watson, one of the most accomplished players in school history. Whether or not Bryant begins September as the starting quarterback depends greatly on how much Hunter Johnson and Zerrick Cooper close a gap that was created in the spring. Finding the right man for the job will likely last into the season, but much will be revealed a couple weeks into camp when coaches narrow the race to two QBs.
Find the edge
No, this is not about finding edge pass rushers. Clemson already has those on a stacked defensive line. The Tigers are looking for that spark and motivation that helped drive them to consecutive national title game trips. Linebacker Ben Boulware isn’t around anymore to bring the intensity and fire, so it’ll fall on somebody else’s shoulders (i.e., Christian Wilkins) to create and carry that chip.
Changing of the center
Jay Guillermo, who logged more than a thousand snaps in 2016, graduated, so Clemson turns to new center Justin Falcinelli, who has played 297 snaps at multiple line positions in his entire career. While the coaches have felt good about Falcinelli since last season, he’ll have to work out the bugs with a new QB, jell with four returning starters and take on a leadership role this month.
Punt past competition
Will Spiers looked the part of Andy Teasdall’s replacement with an average of 40 yards on nine punts in the spring game. That put him in position to be the starter over Michael Batson and Carson King, but the competition is far from over, but Spiers can’t rest on those laurels in fall camp, where the job will be ultimately decided by consistency.
Keep receivers happy
So many bodies for just one ball. Co-offensive coordinator/WRs coach Jeff Scott believes he has eight or nine pass catchers he feels good about playing, a dilemma he's faced before. Finding a rotation behind starters Deon Cain, Ray-Ray McCloud and Hunter Renfrow will be a good problem to have.
The other cornerback
Senior Ryan Carter has one of the two cornerback spots locked down. The other could be a heavy rotation of Marcus Edmond, Mark Fields and Trayvon Mullen until someone takes command in camp. Edmond (Lower Richland) has proven himself in big games, Fields might have the most potential and Mullen could be the most talented overall. It’s one of the most intriguing position battles in fall camp.
Three new toys
Most of Clemson’s team this fall was on campus in the spring, but three talented freshmen – defensive back A.J. Terrell and receivers Tee Higgins and Amari Rodgers – joined the team over the summer. Coaches are excited to see what they can do. All three are good enough to challenge for playing time if they adapt quickly to the system.
Challenging Lamar
Everyone expects big things from Tre Lamar, a 6-foot-3, 240-pound run-stopping linebacker, in his sophomore campaign, but has hasn’t completely won the job. Redshirt sophomore Chad Smith (6-4, 235) made a big push in the spring and is listed as a co-starter with Lamar at the “mike” spot. The most consistent, not most talented, player this month likely wins the starting job .
An offense without Leggett
This isn’t as much about replacing Jordan Leggett, one of the school’s greatest tight ends, as it is what his absence does to the offense. If Milan Richard or another tight end can’t get the job done in practice, the offense could be giving away play calls based on formations and personnel that go against what the staff prefers when the season begins.
Finding Feaster
Everyone is patiently waiting for Spartanburg native Tavien Feaster to live up to the C.J. Spiller comparisons, but the sophomore running back came out of spring ball third on the depth chart. With the experienced C.J. Fuller and Adam Choice ahead of him, a fully healthy Feaster needs to show that extra gear he lacked last fall camp and prove he can pass protect to move up the pecking order.
This story was originally published August 2, 2017 at 4:40 PM with the headline "Top 10 fall camp story lines for Clemson football in 2017."