With all but one regular starter back from last season and plenty of veterans who have played a lot of football during their time at Clemson, the Tigers have plenty of proven commodities on the defensive side of the ball.
So when discussing who might be the team’s most improved defensive players leading up to this season, it wasn’t much of a surprise to hear Clemson coach Dabo Swinney single out a couple of more inexperienced players who could take on more significant roles this fall.
The first name Swinney mentioned was sophomore defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro, who’s in line to be Tyler Davis’ primary backup this season. It’s a spot on the depth chart Orhorhoro also found himself in last season when he might have made a bigger impact had he been able to stay healthy, but a knee injury in the opener against Wake Forest limited the 6-foot-5, 295-pounder to just four games.
A member of Clemson’s 2019 signing class, Orhorhoro has five tackles (1.5 for loss) in 14 career games to this point.
“He’s a guy that if I had to pick one guy I think has got a chance to have a great season, I’d say Ruke,” Swinney said. “I think he’s ready. He’s ready to be a guy.
“Ruke has made big strides for us up front. Big strides.”
Another player Swinney singled out was sophomore Kevin Swint, who could provide even more depth to a defensive end position that’s already chock full it. Originally recruited to Clemson as a linebacker, Swint made the move to end in the spring and has caught on quickly at his new position.
Swint got 35 snaps over 10 games and finished with three tackles primarily as a true freshman reserve last season. Exactly how the 6-3, 230-pounder will find snaps at a position that already includes Myles Murphy, K.J. Henry, Xavier Thomas, Justin Foster and Justin Mascoll remains to be seen, but Swinney has been impressed by what he’s seen from the youngster.
“He’d probably be the other most improved, especially because he moved to a new position,” Swinney said of Swint. “He’s a great football player.”
Clemson will hold its seventh practice of fall camp Friday morning. The Tigers open the season Sept. 4 against Georgia in the Duke’s Mayo Classic in Charlotte.
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