Day One Practice Insider: Freshman receiver earns attention from Dabo Swinney

Dabo Swinney worked personally with summer enrollee wide receiver TJ Moore.

TigerNet Staff - Thursday, August 01 2024

CLEMSON – The searing heat gave way to storms and cooler temps, prompting head coach Dabo Swinney to bemoan the loss of the high temps and high sun. Practice went on as scheduled, and there are plenty of news and notes to pass along.

The media group was allowed to watch the first seven periods of the first practice of August camp. The Tigers are relatively healthy - defensive tackle Vic Burley and running back Keith Adams are in green jerseys – but neither appeared limited and are close to returning.

*All eyes are on the freshmen, and it didn’t take Swinney long to find freshman receiver TJ Moore. Moore arrived in late May, so this was the first opportunity for Swinney to work with the Florida native. Moore received plenty of 1-on-1 time from his head coach, and at one point, Swinney said, “We can give you all the tools, but you have to use them.”

Moore certainly looks the part—as many of these highly rated freshmen often do—but something Swinney said during his pre-practice press conference stood out.

“He’s a great ball skill guy,” Swinney said of Moore. “He’s a great finisher on the ball. I don’t have any assumptions on him, so I am ready to get out there and see what we have.”

Moore runs crisp routes and looks to have good hands. A finisher – someone who can go up and high-point the ball or win 50-50 matchups – is something the Tigers have lacked over the last few seasons.

*Speaking of the wide receivers – it has been a few years since we’ve seen a group that not only has depth but also depth of talent. Ronan Hanafin has added good weight, Noble Johnson looks like the guy we thought he could be out of high school, the freshmen look the part, Antonio Williams is moving around like the confident veteran he is, Adam Randall’s body composition is the best since he’s been here. On down the line, this is a good-looking group.

But, as one onlooker said, the results will tell the tale, and Georgia is in 30 days.

*Nick Eason wanted his defensive tackles to lose their religion and break some equipment.

With his group gathered, he called out some denominations and said he didn’t care what background they came from – his call was “to hit somebody.”

Going painstakingly through the drill on technique and movement, his repeated call was to “break the sled” they were using to simulate an offensive lineman.

* Peter Woods was indeed with the defensive ends group during the media practice viewing time, earning plaudits from DEs coach Chris Rumph during one drill. Rumph and Da’Quan Bowers split up the DEs group, and at the time viewed, Woods was working with TJ Parker, Zaire Patterson and AJ Hoffler and Darien Mayo on one side, with Cade Denhoff, Caden Story, Armon Mason and Jahiem Lawson among those on the other side with Bowers.

*In some drills work ordering, the running backs were working in an order with Phil Mafah then Keith Adams Jr., Jarvis Green, Jay Haynes, Peyton Streko, Wise Segars Jr., Tristen Rigby and David Eziomume. The starting OL group was (l-r) Tristan Leigh, Marcus Tate, Ryan Linthicum, Walker Parks and Blake Miller.

*Swinney told us before practice started that freshman tight end Christian Bentancur is “one of the purest athletes we’ve ever signed.” For Bentancur’s first official practice, that’s quite the bar already set.

We can tell you he’s well on his way to exceeding expectations.

The six feet five inches, 235-pound freshman glides on the field with a quick release that got plenty of praise from tight ends coach Kyle Richardson. Much like Swinney was excited to see Moore for the first time in his first summer practice, Richardson got his first impressions of his new addition.

Not only did Bentancur get plenty of reps within his position group, but we saw him get early work in special teams, primarily lined up with the field goal team. Bentancur may not see the field immediately, but if today was any indication, keeping him off the field may be difficult.

*Moving off the skill positions and into the trenches, we got a good look at some of Clemson’s freshman offensive linemen.

The two freshman standouts were easily Elyjah Thurmon and Mason Wade during individual drills.

Both possess quick first steps off the line with a solid burst, which, given their size, is fascinating. During the drill, Matt Luke corrected both freshmen to “be more violent” and emphasized being aggressive with their hands.

It took a jog to the back of the line and the next rep for both linemen to make the correction, with Luke emphatically praising both.

In spring practice, it was easy to see that Luke’s energy is a game-changer for this position group. Once again, Luke’s style makes a coach who is being shrouded in big bodies stand out significantly.

*We also got to take a look at the rotation for the return team in the first practice. Antonio Williams and Tyler Brown lined up first for the drill, with Troy Stellato lining up third. Stellato had a drop, which made Tyler Grisham reinforce ball security in the drizzling rain. Bryant Wesco also got some looks at returner and spent some time with the punt team and juggs machine catching balls.

*There’s been plenty of great things being said about Sammy Brown all summer, and that’s likely to continue as we roll into fall camp. Behind Wade Woodaz and Barrett Carter, Brown appears to be an established presence within the linebacker room.

Brown was able to make a couple of interceptions in a drill designed for the player to make a specific read on a route concept. He received some coaching from Goodwin shortly after.

One thing is for sure about the linebackers – that is a speedy group. They are all fast.

*David Hood, Brandon Rink, and Grayson Mann contributed to this story.