5 things Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney must accomplish during spring practice
CLEMSON - With the Clemson football team set to open spring practice Monday, it’s like Christmas in March for Dabo Swinney.
“I’m excited to get started – it’s going to be a lot of fun out there, a lot of competition going on,” Swinney said before kicking off his 15th spring as the Tigers’ coach.
Clemson will practice for two weeks before halting for spring break, then resume practice for three more weeks before drawing things to a close with the spring game April 15 at Memorial Stadium (1 p.m. ACCN+).
“We’ve got an excellent team coming back, especially with those seven guys coming back and taking an extra year,” Swinney said. “With those guys it should be a pretty salty spring.”
Those seven players - center Will Putnam, defensive backs Sheridan Jones and Jalyn Phillips and defensive linemen Xavier Thomas, Justin Mascoll, Tyler Davis and Ruke Orhorhoro - received an extra season of eligibility from the NCAA because of the impact COVID-19 had on the 2020 season. Their decisions to return provide Swinney and the Tigers with valuable experience and leadership as they begin preparations for the 2023 season.
There also will be plenty of new faces in spring practice as well what with 15 midyear enrollees and new offensive coordinator Garrett Riley.
Improvements are imperative if Swinney is to right the wrongs of the past two seasons, which included back-to-back three-loss campaigns and being left out of the College Football Playoff after six consecutive years of earning a spot.
If the Tigers are to return to their lofty status, here's what Swinney, Riley and the rest of the staff must accomplish this spring:
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Get new quarterbacks behind Cade Klubink up to speed
This will be the first spring with Cade Klubnik taking “starter’s snaps” at quarterback, but plenty of attention also will be afforded new arrivals Christopher Vizzina and Paul Tyson.
“We’ve got a talented young quarterback who I think has a bright future ahead,” Swinney said. “And another veteran guy to kind of come in and shore the room up.”
The freshman with a bright future is Vizzina, a four-star prospect from Birmingham, Alabama. The veteran is Tyson, a graduate transfer from Trussville, Alabama, by way of Alabama and Arizona State.
Improve the passing game
Swinney makes no bones about it - “We’ve got to be better passing the ball, period,” Swinney said.
Riley, who led TCU’s prolific offense last season, should provide an immediate impact in that regard. He didn’t develop an “Air Raid” reputation without steering an offense toward explosive plays.
TCU had 91 plays of 20 yards or more last season, which ranked fourth nationally. The Horned Frogs also scored 70 touchdowns – the nation’s fifth-best total – and averaged 6.69 yards per play.
“We’ve got a really great foundation from a run standpoint,” Swinney said. “But we’ve got to get better throwing and catching, and I think he’s going to really help us there.”
Adopt an aggressive mentality offensively
Here’s Riley’s philosophy in a nutshell: “We’re going to be violent and fast.”
That’s music to the ears of Clemson fans, who were frustrated last season by a lack of attack mode.
“Everything kind of starts there, whether we’re in the run game or the passing game,” Riley said. “We’re going to attack, we’re going to be violent, we’re going to be fast. If you want to become a well-rounded offense that makes it tough on defenses, that’s thing No. 1 for me.”
Break in some 'big nasties'
Young linemen on both sides of the ball will get a baptism by fire this spring, courtesy of offensive line coach Thomas Austin and defensive line coaches Nick Eason and Lemanski Hall.
“We hit all of our needs in the trenches,” Swinney said. “We got some big nasties on both sides of the line of scrimmage.”
Three midyear enrollees along the offensive line will participate in spring practice – Ian Reed, Harris Sewell and Zack Owens – while four defensive linemen will get their introduction to Clemson football - Peter Woods, Vic Burley, Stephiylan Green and T.J. Parker.
Boost the secondary
Breakdowns in the secondary cost the Tigers’ dearly in their defeats (and some of their close victories) last season, so that will be an area of focus this spring. Clemson allowed 231.7 passing yards per game in 2022, which ranked 76th nationally.
Having Jones and Phillips back for a fifth season should help as will the continued maturation of Nate Wiggins, Tyler Venables, Andrew Mukuba, R.J. Mickens and Jeadyn Lukus. Midyear enrollees Shelton Lewis and Kylen Webb, a four-star cornerback and safety, respectively, will be tested this spring as well.
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson football: things Dabo Swinney must do in spring practice
