He’s ‘a super-athletic Ben Boulware.’ Clemson linebacker ready for breakout year

If you don’t know who James Skalski is yet, chances are you will soon.

The Clemson linebacker has played only sparingly in his college career, partly due to injuries and partly because he had really good linebackers in front of him. But that is slated to change in 2019 as the Georgia native is expected to be a key part of Clemson’s defense this season.

The Tigers opened fall camp on Friday, and Skalski is penciled in as the starter at the Will linebacker spot.

“He is a really good football player,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “It’s just a matter of time before everybody knows it.”

Skalski signed with the Tigers in 2016 as part of a recruiting class that included offensive lineman John Simpson.

The two have been facing off in practice for more than three years, and Simpson, a preseason All-ACC selection, knows all too well what Skalski is capable of.

“That kid is an animal. He’s everywhere. He’s very elusive. He knows where the ball is. He knows where it’s going,” Simpson said. “He studies the playbook and all of that good stuff. He’s going to be on top of his game this year.”

Skalski appeared in 14 games as a freshman in 2016, mostly playing on special teams.

Clemson won the national title that season, thanks in large part to defensive leader and All-American linebacker Ben Boulware.

Safety Tanner Muse, a preseason All-ACC selection, sees similarities between the hard-hitting Boulware and Skalski.

“Skalski’s like a super-athletic Ben Boulware. No knock on Ben. Ben’s great. He had tremendous instincts, that’s why he played so great. But Skalski is super athletic, super fast. And he will hit you,” Muse said. “Hopefully you’ll see a little bit of that this year. I hope he stays healthy. That’s the main thing for him this year. But outside of that he’s going to bring it every play. He’s someone to watch out for for sure.”

Skalski had 37 tackles in 14 games, with two starts as a sophomore in 2017, and he played in only four games while redshirting last season due to injuries.

Now fully healthy, Skalski is one of the key pieces of a Clemson back seven that could be the best of the Swinney era.

Tigers defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Brent Venables describes Skalski as “a heat-seeking missile.”

“You don’t have to coach him,” Venables said. “He just knows where the ball is and he’ll blow people up.”

This story was originally published August 2, 2019 at 5:00 AM.