As injuries mount for Clemson defense, Swinney says they have "to dig in a little bit"

Skalski missed last week's game against Syracuse. (Photo courtesy ACC)

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Tue Oct 27 12:22:21 GMT-04:00 2020

Clemson’s defense could potentially be down as many as three starters when it takes the field Saturday.

No.1 Clemson (6-0, 5-0 ACC) hosts Boston College (4-2, 3-2) at noon Saturday (ABC) in Death Valley. Starting cornerback Derion Kendrick, linebacker James Skalski, defensive tackle Jordan Williams, and defensive tackle Tyler Davis all missed the game against Syracuse last weekend.

This week, Skalski is definitely out, Davis is day-to-day, Kendrick should be able to return, and linebacker Mike Jones, Jr., is listed as day-to-day.

“It's that time of year when you get some guys banged up and you have to dig in a little bit,” head coach Dabo Swinney said during his Tuesday press conference. “We have got some guys that have to step up and you saw that last week. I thought Jake Venables did a great job for us stepping in there and filling a role. BC is going to be a tough team. This is a really well-coached team. Jeff (Hafley) has done an awesome job coming in and he's put a good staff together. He has created a belief in his guys and his guys are playing hard. They are playing confident.

“They could easily be 5-1 right now and they are a 4-2 football team. He has a couple of transfer guys in there. They have done a good job of figuring out what their strengths are and playing to those strengths. They have gotten better and better and more confident as the season has gone on, and this going to be a tough, tough challenge for the Tigers this week, no doubt about it.”

Skalski, who has tallied 27 tackles, 1.5 for loss, in 168 snaps, will miss more than one game, putting his status for the game in South Bend against Notre Dame in question.

“We have a guy that is going to be out a while and I wanted to make sure you know that. We didn't find out until last night,” Swinney said about Skalski. “We got the MRI back late and we thought Skalski was going to be good to go and he was feeling pretty good, but he went and got a quick MRI and it looks like he will have to have surgery and will be out a few games. That is a big loss for us. We have a few other guys banged up and are working to get back, and it's a day-to-day thing with those guys. But Skalski, he is going to miss a few games, unfortunately. It's in his groin area.

“We anticipate getting him back here in a few games, but we have to see how quickly he responds to the scope. Great football player. I hate that for him. Senior. I hate that he has to miss the last couple of home games, at least one of them, anyway. But he is definitely out this week.”

Swinney was asked about Davis (high ankle sprain) and if he thought Davis would return soon, and he said yes without providing a timeframe.

“I am very confident that he will be back soon. Hopefully sooner rather than later,” Swinney said. “But he's progressing really well. Pretty confident in that.”

Jones, the starting Nickel/SAM linebacker, is also day-to-day. Swinney said the defense has been able to play at a high level despite all of the injuries.

“Just our preparation and guys stepping up and being ready. That is one of those silver linings. Our defense is not easy. There are a lot of moving parts,” Swinney said. “Sometimes it may take a little longer for some guys to get a hold of. But all of those Zoom meetings from March through July, when normally we wouldn't be able to be with our players, this is a reflection of that, This is one of those silver linings. That is one of the positives that has come about is that mentally, coming into camp, we were further along than we normally would be and that has allowed us to have a little more functional depth early in the process.

“We have built some depth upfront. But you know what, (Bryan) Bresee is not a freshman anymore. He has played six games. Nyles Pinckney has played a lot of football for us. Jordan Williams has played a lot of football for us. And we've had to use the best personnel that we've had week-to-week based on injuries or whatever, so we've got some flexibility that allows us to do what we need to do and gives us the best chance to win.”