The position group on Clemson’s defense that should benefit most from bowl prep

Clemson has perhaps the best defensive line in the country, featuring four potential first-round picks.

The Tigers lead the nation in sacks with 44 and are fourth in tackles for loss with 104.

Yet there is still plenty of room for the defensive front to get better, and more than a dozen bowl practices should benefit Clemson’s defensive line as much as any group on the team.

The Tigers have four All-American caliber starters in Clelin Ferrell, Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence and Austin Bryant but have been searching for more depth all season. The time between the ACC championship game on Dec. 2 and the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1 should allow the Tigers to develop some.

“It’s critical. … And moving forward it’ll be huge to get those guys a bunch of fundamental work. You can slow things down and coach them through some schemes and the whys and the hows,” Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables said. “But as much as anything, it’s the fundamentals.”

The backup defensive line group features Albert Huggins, Jabril Robinson, Nyles Pinckney, Sterling Johnson, Chris Register, Justin Foster and Xavier Kelly as far as players who have played meaningful snaps.

The Tigers have developed some solid depth at defensive tackle, led by Huggins.

The junior played a big role toward the end of the year – when Lawrence missed time with a foot injury – and performed well, recording four tackles for loss in the final four games of the season.

Huggins enters the playoff with five tackles for loss, which is two more than Lawrence. Fellow defensive tackles Robinson, Pinckney and Johnson have combined for 5.5.

Wilkins leads the way for Clemson’s defensive tackles with 8.5 tackles for loss.

The Tigers’ five key contributors at defensive tackle have combined for an impressive 22 tackles for loss and also have performed well in categories that don’t show up on the stat sheet as far as creating havoc in the middle.

“You always say it does start up front, and those guys have been active and disruptive virtually all year,” Venables said. It’s the same group of guys that come every day, year round, ready to work. They like to practice and they like to work, so it’s great for them to get some recognition.”

But developing depth at defensive end has been more difficult.

Ferrell has 17 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks, while Bryant has 14.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks.

The three primary backups, Register, Foster and Kelly, have only combined for 3.5 tackles for loss all year. Venables is hoping those players will make a big jump during bowl prep before five-star defensive end Xavier Thomas joins the mix in January.

“They’re going to get a ton of fundamental work,” Venables said of his reserves, “and that’s critical to the foundation of their success and their futures.”

This story was originally published December 17, 2017 at 5:22 PM with the headline "The position group on Clemson’s defense that should benefit most from bowl prep."