Clemson freshman Dexter Lawrence playing above the norm

Dexter Lawrence was in the fifth grade when he told his mother he wanted to play football.

Lawrence was too big to play Pop Warner football. But Lawrence’s mom told her son that if he started playing football, he couldn’t quit.

He hasn’t.

By the end of his high school career, Lawrence was ranked the second-best recruit in the country by Rivals and 247Sports. He committed to Clemson last December and arrived as a mid-year enrollee in January.

While he didn’t start in Clemson’s season opener at Auburn, he made a tackle on his first defensive play. He finished the game with seven total tackles, including a sack, and even saw playing time on offense as a blocker for a Wayne Gallman touchdown run.

It’s uncommon for a true freshman – let alone a true freshman defensive tackle – to finish second in tackles on a talented defense in his first game. Clemson’s players and coaches weren’t surprised by how well Lawrence played because of how well they had seen him perform in practice.

“If anything, we were like, ‘Man, now someone else can see what it feels like,’ ” said redshirt senior offensive lineman Jay Guillermo. “We’re about tired of blocking him. Now we know it’s not just us that has trouble with him sometimes.”

At 6-foot-5 and 340 pounds, Lawrence is bigger than almost everyone his age – or any age, for that matter – and has rare movement skills.

“I don’t know, since I’ve been here, if we’ve really had anyone quite like him,” Guillermo said. “I don’t think we’ve had anyone be that physically just monstrous.”

Sophomore defensive lineman Christian Wilkins, a five-star recruit in his own right, said Lawrence is even more physically gifted than he is.

“That guy’s just a freak. He’s a man-child. There’s no other way to describe it,” Wilkins said. “People consider me a freak, but he’s even bigger and can dunk a basketball and do a lot of crazy athletic things.”

Coach Dabo Swinney said Lawrence is unlike any other player he has been around.

“His mentality, his coachability, his maturity, his demeanor, he’s just a very selfless guy. Very humble, very smart and just incredibly athletic,” Swinney said. “You just don’t see many human beings like him.”

Lawrence speaks quietly off the field.

“If you’re going to call him a bully, it’s because of the way he plays football, and not because of the way he carries himself,” Lucas said. “He’s not intimidating as a person to talk to. He’s one of those guys that anybody is comfortable being around.”

Guillermo and Swinney both describe Lawrence as “a big teddy bear.”

“He’s got a great spirit to him, always smiling,” Swinney said. “A sweet, sweet guy, but he’s big and nasty on the field.”

As much as Lawrence has achieved athletically, he has also performed well academically. After graduating early from high school, Lawrence is pursuing a degree in justice studies, with an eye on a career in forensics.

“He’s just one of those guys that is just one out of a million,” Guillermo said. “He’s just not the norm.”

This story was originally published September 14, 2016 at 9:32 PM with the headline "Clemson freshman Dexter Lawrence playing above the norm."