Clemson picked up a nice offseason win this week, and it came straight from the NCAA. On Tuesday, Dabo Swinney shared that wide receiver Tristan Smith has been granted an extra year of eligibility.
The wait had been a stressful one for Smith and his family, but with the NCAA finally coming through, Clemson’s receiver room got a real boost heading into fall camp. Smith brings back veteran experience and playmaking rather than sliding into a student-coach role, as had been on the table.
Swinney was clearly happy to talk about it.
“I was just talking with him. Just, you know, super, super happy for him, and that’s been a lot of stress for him and his mom too,” Swinney said. “So just thankful that it went his way, and he’s going to get an opportunity to keep playing. This is just a game changer for him to be able to continue to play and put some good play on tape. I’m really happy for him, and it certainly doesn’t hurt the room. That’s for sure. That’s a really good room that got better.”
Smith’s return solidifies a deep receiver group, but the real wild card is redshirt freshman Chris Denson. The staff has been working to make Denson a versatile piece, splitting his reps between receiver and running back. Pair that with a group of speedy true freshmen, and this room looks as fast and deep as any in the ACC.
Coming out of spring, Swinney made it clear Denson had a decision ahead about his role. On Tuesday, he offered an update: Denson is still sorting out where he fits, and while a minor hamstring tweak has slowed him a bit, he’s getting looks all over the field.
“I don’t know that he’s made a full decision. He’s worked some receiver, worked a little running back,” Swinney said. “He actually tweaked his hamstring a little bit the other day. So hopefully he won’t be too limited. But we’ll figure it out. He’s open to it — we just haven’t been on the field with him to really give you any type of evaluation, because he’s been working multiple things this offseason. So we’ll see a little more as we go through.”
With Smith back and Denson shaping up as a matchup problem, Chad Morris has a full set of options to work with. The depth is there, the speed is there, and Clemson looks ready to lean on its playmakers this fall.
