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Clemson football was a wide receiver factory in the not-so-distant past, and despite two years of less dominant receiver play, the Tigers haven’t forgotten that. Now, Clemson appears to be using that recent history and longing for the glory days to recruit new receivers.
June has been a big month for Clemson recruiting, especially for receivers. The Tigers landed a pair of talented outfielders on the same day, June 6: five-star Bryant Wesco and four-star TJ Moore. Clemson may not be done yet: Five-star Mike Matthews, the No. 10 prospect in the class of 2024, has yet to announce his college decision, and the Tigers are a contender.
When Matthews visited Clemson on June 2, he told Rivals.com that the coaching staff had compared him, Wesco and Moore to the early 2010s elite trio of DeAndre Hopkins, Sammy Watkins and Martavis Bryant in their recruiting camp.
In other words, Clemson is bringing in top receivers by telling them the Tigers want their help in bringing back “Wide Receiver U.” And so far it seems to be working.
Wide receiver glory days
The Tigers produced NFL draft picks at a high rate in the mid-2010s. Of the aforementioned trio, Hopkins and Watkins each made it to the first round of drafts. Bryant went fourth.
The trio seemed unusual at first. But then Clemson kept turning up NFL talent at receiver.
From 2017 to 2021, seven Clemson receivers were drafted. The highest were first-rounder Mike Williams in 2017 and second-rounder Tee Higgins in 2020. In addition to them, Clemson had one third (Amari Rodgers in 2021), two fifths (Hunter Renfrow in 2019 and Cornell Powell in 2021). ) and two sixth-rounders (Deon Cain and Ray-Ray McCloud in 2018).
A decline in production
No Clemson receivers have been selected in the past two NFL drafts. Why the gap? Clemson didn’t recruit high-profile receivers, but the players it did get didn’t always pan out as planned.
The highest-rated receiver in the 2018 class was five-star Derrion Kendrick. He ended up switching to defensive back and transferring to Georgia before committing. Four-star 2018 receiver Justyn Ross saw his production decline as his career progressed and was left out. Kendrick is currently with the Rams and Ross is with the Chiefs.
The 2019 class included four-star Frank Ladson, who transferred to Miami, four-star Joseph Ngata, who entered this year’s draft and was not selected. In 2020, Clemson added four-star EJ Williams, who remains with the Tigers and hasn’t had double-digit receptions since his freshman season.
Another factor is quarterback play. The mid-to-late 2010s threw players like Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence. Watson threw for more than 4,000 yards in consecutive seasons, and Lawrence had more than 3,000 in each of his three seasons. His successor, DJ Uiagalelei, peaked at around 2,500 passing yards in two seasons as Clemson’s starter. It’s hard to get crazy receiving stats when you don’t have crazy passing stats.
Time will tell what new starting quarterback Cade Klubnik does, but the combination of his takeover and the new offense led by Garrett Riley looks to create intrigue among the newcomers on offense. It worked on Wesco, as did the post about restoring the Wide Receiver U.
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A successful recruitment speech
As a Texas native, Wesco knew Riley before he transferred from TCU to Clemson. Riley had recruited Wesco during his time with the Horned Frogs, and when he joined Dabo Swinney’s staff, Wesco was one of the first receivers he targeted.
Wesco said Greenville News that the way Riley’s offense spread the ball around, both among receivers and in the running game, appealed to him. Clemson’s reputation for developing NFL receivers hasn’t faded despite the recent drought. That impressed Wesco, as did the opportunity to bring Clemson back to the golden age of pass catchers.
“I got my name out there and I’m someone who can make an impact on the program and start a whole new era for the whole team,” Wesco said. “It’s huge.”
Christina Longcovers of the Clemson Tigers for Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. You can follow him on Twitter@christinalong00or email him at [email protected].
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Sources 2/ https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/sports/college/clemson/2023/06/27/clemson-football-recruiting-wide-receivers-garrett-riley-dabo-swinney/70306294007/ The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article |
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