Hall seeing 'best version' of Xavier Thomas this spring

Clemson DEs coach Lemanski Hall is seeing the right focus from Xavier Thomas this spring.

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Tue Apr 04 07:00:15 GMT-04:00 2023

CLEMSON - The Tigers have had plenty of NFL draft declarations this cycle, but others have decided to stay at Clemson for one more year. One such player is defensive end Xavier Thomas, who is returning for his sixth and final season.

This past season he suffered a foot injury and played in only three games. However, he hopes to finish out his collegiate career strong. Defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall seems confident that he will be able to do so, if he is healthy.

“XT (Xavier Thomas) needed to come back,” Hall said. “He knew (he’s) been injured and (he hasn’t) done the things that he wanted to do from a football standpoint, and talk about his draft stock. It wasn’t where it needed to be. And so now, he gets a chance to come back (and) hopefully stay healthy (and) prove that he deserves to be one of those top guys.”

Despite his playmaking showcased at Clemson, Thomas’s draft stock is actually quite low. According to NFL Draft Buzz, if he had declared for the NFL Draft this year, he most likely would not have been drafted. However, he is incredibly fast - his 40-yard dash time has been recorded at 4.49. For comparison, the fastest 40-yard dash from a defensive end in this past NFL Combine was 4.44 seconds. Speed is essential for all players, but there is still room for improvement.

“I think that XT has always been (an) explosive guy. (I think) for him, it’s just details and things that we asked him to do,” Hall said. “From a run game standpoint, understanding block read, understanding being physical at the point of attack – just complete his pass rush, get some tools in his pass rush game.”

Even back in high school, Thomas showed a lot of promise and talent. In his freshman year back in 2014, in only 10 games he was able to record 21 tackles for loss; in his sophomore year, he averaged seven tackles per game. Coming to Clemson, he recorded 43 tackles in his first season and was named a first-time Freshman All-America selection by USA Today and ESPN.com, among others. Thomas was also a third-team All-ACC selection in his second year, but complications with COVID-19, in addition to strep throat, ended up limiting him to seven games. In his fourth season, he had a number of strong performances, including getting three quarterback pressures and a tackle on Brock Purdy when the Tigers played Iowa State in the Cheez-It Bowl.

Going into his final season, Hall stressed the importance of keeping Thomas’s mind in the game and focused. Looking toward a potential career in the NFL certainly provides a distraction, but right now, that isn’t a problem though because Hall says Thomas is dialed in and stepping up as a vocal leader.

“If we can keep him locked in good (in his) headspace, and he’s focused and dialed in, that’s the best version of XT and that’s what I see right now,” Hall said. “I saw that he stepped up the other day, just being a vocal guy in my meeting on the field.”