Clemson Tigers

Why Clemson still will contend in the post-Deshaun Watson era

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

Andy Staples/Sports Illustrated

CLEMSON, S.C. — On a chamber of commerce Saturday when seemingly no one would make a definitive declaration about Clemson’s quarterbacks, receiver Ray-Ray McCloud offered the closest thing. “Obviously, our two quarterbacks played better,” McCloud said of Kelly Bryant and Tucker Israel, who led the Orange team to a 19–14 win against the White in the Tigers’ spring game.

Unfortunately for those seeking a hint at who might take the first snap for Clemson when Kent State visits Sept. 2—or, more importantly, when Auburn visits Sept. 9—McCloud was only kidding. No edge was apparent for any member of the trio (junior Bryant, redshirt freshman Zerrick Cooper or true freshman Hunter Johnson) competing to replace the greatest player in the history of Clemson football.

That is not hyperbole, by the way. As a sophomore, Deshaun Watson led the Tigers to within an onside kick of a national title. As a junior, he led them to a national title. Watson, receiver Mike Williams, tailback Wayne Gallman, defensive tackle Carlos Watkins and the rest of the Tigers’ outgoing seniors came back to Death Valley on Saturday to pick up their ACC and national title rings at halftime. “They were blessings,” McCloud said, “and it was an honor to play with them.” Then he acknowledged the new reality. “We flipped the page on day one of spring,” McCloud said. “We know that last year is last year.”

Sandwiching the ovations for those champions were two halves played by fairly evenly matched teams of Clemson’s current players. The Tigers didn’t use any wacky scoring system. They didn’t play the first-team offense against the second-team defense to goose the scoring numbers for the players the fans already knew. The defenses were allowed to hit all four quarterbacks who played, and hit them they did. (While the defenses combined for only two sacks, given what we know about Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence, Austin Bryant and Clelin Ferrell, all of whom played much of the game, this probably means the quarterbacks are fairly elusive.) Though the Tigers didn’t reveal who will start at quarterback in the 2017 season, they did reveal what they are: a deep, carefully constructed team that will not take a huge step back a season after winning a national title.

“It’s not just depth,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said when asked about his team’s apparent plug-and-play capability. “It’s functional depth.” What he means is this: Clemson has big numbers on campus because only 10 true freshmen have yet to arrive. The Tigers have not experienced anywhere near the attrition most teams do. Between National Signing Day in ’13 and the opening game of the ’16 season, Clemson lost seven players from the roster. Most schools lost more than 20 in the same period. But those players who stayed have not merely hung around campus watching Watson & Co. succeed. Many have played backup roles. Many would have started earlier elsewhere. This is why defensive tackle Scott Pagano can graduate from Clemson, decide to play his final year of eligibility at a program where he can start and get scholarship offers from virtually every school that isn’t Clemson.

This program was not a flash-in-the-pan propped up by Watson. The people who follow Clemson closely already knew that, but Clemson isn’t always mentioned in the same breath as Alabama and Ohio State* even though it should be.

*That would be the Ohio State program that suffered a 31–0 loss to Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl. That particular buttkicking will serve as a footnote to the Tigers’ toppling of Alabama, but it might be the most dominant performance any team delivered last season.

Clemson isn’t reloading now. It has been in a perpetual state of reloading for five years. Receiver DeAndre Hopkins left after ’12. Sammy Watkins had one more year to play. Watkins and quarterback Tajh Boyd left after ’13. Williams was already on the roster, and Watson came in ’14. Defensive tackle Grady Jarrett and defensive end Vic Beasley left after ’14. Wilkins, who can play tackle or end, came in ’15 and joined Shaq Lawson and Kevin Dodd, who were already on the roster. Lawson and Dodd left after ’15. Ferrell emerged in ’16, the same year when all 340 pounds of Lawrence arrived on campus.

The Tigers lost five stars to the NFL draft after the ’14 season and reached the national title game in ’15. They lost nine players to the draft off that team and then won the national title in ’16. So why should we expect much dropoff now? “It’s just the culture we have,” Wilkins said. “We recruit the right guys. All the coaches know what’s up. All the players know what’s up. … Everybody knows the standard. The best is the standard.”

Go ahead. Make a short list of the teams that might compete for the next national title. Alabama should be on it. So should Ohio State and Penn State. So should USC and Washington. You’ve probably got Florida State on there, but Florida State has to go to Clemson on Nov. 11. The top of the ACC Atlantic (Clemson, Florida State, Louisville, NC State) could be the most rugged foursome in any division in any conference, and the team that emerges from that group should be in line to earn a playoff berth.

For Clemson to be that team, several things must happen. First, the defense likely needs to lead the way. With America’s best defensive line fronting a group at least as athletic as last year’s, that shouldn’t be a problem. Second, the Tigers need to find offensive production from new sources. Williams, the runaway favorite to win any 50/50 ball, is gone. Deon Cain isn’t as big, but he’s just as fast. He’ll have to help the Tigers stretch the field. Meanwhile, they’ll try to get the ball to McCloud in space through either bubble screens or by moving him around before the snap. C.J. Fuller and Tavien Feaster will need to help replace Gallman’s production on the ground, though the winner of the quarterback derby may help on that front.

Bryant appeared to have the best command of the offense Saturday even though he injured a tendon on the pinky finger on his throwing hand on the game’s first play. “If we played today, he’d go be the guy,” Swinney said. “But we don’t play today. We play in September. Everything matters. Everything counts.” Cooper appeared to have the strongest arm. Johnson seemed to have the best touch. He engineered the play of the day by dropping a 24-yard touchdown pass into the hands of Diondre Overton in the corner of the end zone. He also took two huge losses after mishandling shotgun snaps.

Watching the trio offered a reminder that Watson made everything look easy. But these Tigers can move the ball if one of the three develops over the summer and stakes a claim to the job in camp. The competition won’t be paused until then, though. It will rage during throwing sessions throughout the summer, and Clemson’s veterans will be paying attention to everything. “You’ve still got to get chemistry with all of them,” redshirt junior receiver Hunter Renfrow said. “You have to divvy up your time accordingly. You can’t spend too much time with one of them. You don’t want to always hang out with Hunter or always hang out with Zerrick. You’ve got to mix it up. We’re just looking for a guy to step up and lead the team.” Each day will have a winner. “We’ll probably have them rotating,” Renfrow said. “The one that has the best day will probably lead the team in the next skill and drill.”

The quarterback finally chosen by Swinney and co-coordinators Jeff Scott and Tony Elliott will be surrounded by everything he needs to succeed. With a lot of help from Watson, the Tigers finally reached the top of the sport last season. But Swinney and the staff didn’t build Clemson to be a two-year wonder. The Tigers are constructed to be an annual participant in the national title race for the foreseeable future. “We definitely have the ingredients to be one of those teams that has a chance,” Swinney said. “That’s really where we want to be every year. You won’t hear me come out and say ‘We’re going to win it all.’ I just want to be one of those teams that has a chance.”

This article originally appeared on