Tag: Clemson secondary

Notebook: Day 3 observations from Clemson’s defense

Clemson returned to the practice fields behind the Allen Reeves Football Complex on Monday for Day 3 of fall camp. The Tigers practiced in helmets and small shoulder pads and allowed the media to view six periods of practice for close to an hour. …

Clemson returned to the practice fields behind the Allen Reeves Football Complex on Monday for Day 3 of fall camp.

The Tigers practiced in helmets and small shoulder pads and allowed the media to view six periods of practice for close to an hour.

Here are The Clemson Insider’s observations of the Clemson defense from Monday’s practice.

  • A few defenders were limited in the practice due to injuries but there were no changes from previous days. DeMonte Capehart was still in yellow and was even limited during team calisthenics. Payton Page and Etinosa Reuben remained in green which allowed them to participate in individual drills without contact.
  • New York Mets hall of fame Darryl Strawberry attended Monday’s practice to observe the Tigers. Strawberry serves as a Christian speaker in his retirement from professional baseball.

Defensive Line

  • Justin Foster demonstrated his leadership on the team as he lead the team in “Tiger jacks” during the stretching period. He has also showed his leadership during individual drills on the defensive line.
  • Todd Bates continued to show several different combinations on the defensive line during the position group’s installation period during practice. The depth in the room continues to stand out during practice particularly at defensive end. K.J. Henry, Justin Mascoll, Xavier Thomas and Myles Murphy all repped with the first unit at end.
  • During all of the looks the group showed, two student-athletes unsurprisingly stood out as common denominators among the first group. Tyler Davis and Bryan Bresee always took reps with the first team at defensive tackle.

Linebackers

  • Defensive coordinator Brent Venables tends to ride one particular linebacker harder during linebacker drills, his son Jake Venables. Jake was back to full capacity after wearing a green jersey on Friday and Saturday.
  • Sixth-year middle linebacker James Skalski’s passion and intensity set the tone throughout the position group’s individual periods. He continued to serve as a leader in the unit and run the first rep in every drill with Baylon Spector.
  • Barrett Carter looks like he belongs despite his status as a freshman  in an experienced room. He did receive a little extra coaching from Venables in the drills but received it well and was quick to correct any errors.
  • There was one funny moment during the individual period as Venables walked the backers through a drill where they practiced shedding blocks and fitting up on a running back. A manager served as the running back and carried a shield dummy. Venables noticed his linebackers hitting the shield lightly and said, “I don’t care who is carrying the back pick them up, explode through the ball carrier.” The next linebacker picked the manager three feet off the ground.

Secondary

  • Andrew Booth took all of the first reps at corner and continues to emerge as a leader amongst the cornerbacks.
  • Freshman corner Nate Wiggins looked much more comfortable at practice on Monday than when he first arrived this past weekend.
  • Sheridan Jones and Mario Goodrich received correction from cornerbacks coach Mike Reed during an open field tackling drill. Both responded well and were complimented by Reed on their next drill.
  • Nolan Turner and Landen Zanders stepped up first for all of the safety drills during practice.
  • Sophomore R.J. Mickens stepped out of the safety drills for a couple of minutes to have his ankle taped but did not seem to lose any momentum when he returned to practice.
  • Former Clemson player Elijah Turner is on staff as a graduate assistant and has a lot of responsibility with the nickel backs during practice. He took Trenton Simpson, Tyler Venables, Barrett Carter, Malcom Greene and Matthew Maloney to a different spot during the second period of individual drills to work on pass defense.
  • During that period Venables made a nice play on a ball and tipped it up to himself to pull down an interception.

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Notebook: Day 1 observations of Clemson’s defense

Clemson opened fall camp on Friday in high spirits in preparation for the 2021 season. The media was allowed to observe the entirety of the opening practice at the practice fields behind the Allen Reeves Football Complex. Clemson practiced with …

Clemson opened fall camp on Friday in high spirits in preparation for the 2021 season.

The media was allowed to observe the entirety of the opening practice at the practice fields behind the Allen Reeves Football Complex. Clemson practiced with helmets only and without contact for almost three hours.

Freshman Barrett Carter burst onto the scene with an impressive first practice that included a one-handed interception.

“Solid. He picks it up well. He is a savvy kid. As you saw he made a one-hand snag today. Just going out here and having fun,” Baylon Spector said after practice. “Great head on him, smart. If he messes up, he is okay. He is not going to cave down. He has a good head on him. He is really smart and is a talented player.”

Here are some more notes from the first practice as the Tigers’ defense drilled with their position groups, as a unit and in 7-on-7 and 11-on-11.

Defensive line

  • Clemson’s defensive line is beyond deep and it showed. During team drills the unit ran out several different combinations and looks for a starting four.
  • In good-on-good Xavier Thomas held the first spot at defensive end  with Bryan Bresee and Tyler Davis on the inside and Justin Mascoll sharing time with K.J. Henry on the other end. Myles Murphy also got some first team reps at defensive end in various drills.
  • Thomas got a little banged up during a drill at the beginning of practice but returned to practice after a few minutes and seemed perfectly fine.
  • Payton Page was in a green jersey during practice and is a big dude. Looked capable in his first practice with the Tigers. Etinosa Reuben was also in a green jersey which means they cannot participate in contact drill.
  • Tre Williams looked impressive in individual drills he stood out for his intensity. His work in the offseason on his body showed, his technique was sound, and he was explosive at the snap.
  • Also, Bresee is still good at football.

Linebackers

  • Sixth-year James Skalski is the clear leader of the linebacker room and took the first rep in every situation including individual drills. He served as defensive coordinator Brent Venables demonstration dummy and also helped out the younger linebackers.
  • The first linebackers out in team drills were Skalski, Spector and Trenton Simpson. Skalski played middle linebacker and Spector held down the weak side.
  • Then obviously Barrett Carter impressed with his physical makeup and athleticism. He intercepted Hunter Helms in team drills with a spectacular one handed catch and shows a lot of promise with his first practice under his belt.

Secondary

  • Andrew Booth returns with the same athleticism and play making ability. He looked impressive in his first practice of the fall, particularly in defending the deep ball. It also seemed he is owning more of a leadership role among the other cornerbacks.
  • Nate Wiggins showed potential particularly in staying coachable and attentive in his first college football practice. The freshman corner took some time to empty his system during individual drills. He also took a chewing from defensive coordinator Brent Venables at one point during practice.
  • Clemson is six deep at corner with Booth and Malcom Greene taking the first team reps at the moment and both looked good at times. Mario Goodrich, Sheridan Jones, Wiggins and Fred Davis.
  • At safety Nolan Turner and Lannden Zanders took most of the first team reps. Tyler Venables and Andrew Mukuba played a lot in second team oppportunities. Joseph Charleston also played a lot in team drills at the position.
  • Greene had a great pass breakup of Joseph Ngata seven on seven.
  • Sheridan Jones jumped and made a one handed deflection to stop a completion in team drills.
  • Mukuba also got some reps at corner despite being listed at safety on the roster.

Team observations

  • Obviously without pads on there was a big emphasis on tracking rather than hitting in team drills. Head coach Dabo Swinney made sure to reemphasize that several times with the threat of being kicked off the field for making contact in non-contact drills.
  • The defense recorded a pair of coverage sacks against the first team offense in seven-on-seven work and matched up relatively well without contact.
  • Jimmy Greenbeans a.k.a. Venables got to show off his arm in defensive drills.

Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!