Justyn Ross has played a few spots for Clemson. He’s back where he’s most comfortable
Part of the allure of Clemson’s offense going into the 2021 season was getting Justyn Ross back on the field.
The redshirt junior sat out for 2020 after having neck surgery related to a congenital fusion in his spine that he was born with. Prior to that, Ross had over 1,865 receiving yards in his first two seasons with the Tigers.
After playing the majority of his collegiate career on the outside, Ross was placed in the slot to start the season.
“I’m a big guy, and I feel like I can move like a little guy,” Ross said on Aug. 13 when asked how his skill set allows him to be versatile enough to move spots.
The experiment to move Ross inside had some good moments — like two touchdown catches against N.C. State — but hasn’t proven to be as fruitful as some would’ve hoped. Recently, though, the Alabama native has been moved back to the outside with Joseph Ngata making his return from a COVID-19 protocol-related hiatus.
Ross had five receptions on eight targets for 75 yards against Florida State over the weekend, only two yards shy of his season-high against the Wolfpack. Being outside is where he’s most comfortable, Tigers offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said, which became more than clear against the Seminoles over the weekend.
“If you watched him, he was playing a lot faster. He was much better with releases,” Elliott added. “He was making the back-shoulder catch, so it was good to see him back out there on the perimeter.”
Added head coach Dabo Swinney: “I thought Ross had a heckuva game last week. Really made some plays that we’d miss the throw or just hadn’t finished with the catch when the throw was there consistently.”
The more success Ross has, the better the Tigers are offensively.
The younger players on the team look up to him and follow his example. Beaux Collins dealt with a foot injury during fall camp. As a freshman, he said the way Ross responded to being out for a year then coming back helped motivate him through his injury.
“His route-running had an impact on all of us, I’d say,” Collins added. “Just being able to see him be creative in everything he does, just technical. It’s just a really good guy to learn from.”
Moving forward, Ross will continue to move around the field wherever he’s needed. Having Collins progress and getting E.J. Williams and Ngata back gives the Tigers more versatility to where Ross can play where he’s most comfortable.
“When he plays at his highest level, he’s going to elevate the play of the other receivers in the room,” Elliott said, “because he’s going to pull them along with him.”
