Clemson Football

Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney addressed the killing of George Floyd during a press conference Monday. 

Swinney said he and members of the Tigers football program "are all hurting for the Floyd family and our country" and described Floyd's death and instances of police brutality as "disgusting acts of evil." The Athletic's Grace Raynor passed along Swinney's comments:

Derek Chauvin was fired from his job with the Minneapolis Police Department and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter after he placed his knee on Floyd's neck and ignored Floyd's pleas that he couldn't breathe while placing him into custody on May 25.

While a number of sports organizations and important figures had issued statements condemning Chauvin's actions and police violence against black people, Swinney hadn't spoken publicly on the matter until Monday.

Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence provided his opinion with a pair of tweets last Friday:

According to Raynor, Swinney said he wanted to listen to other voices speak about Floyd's death before he issued a formal statement.

LeVelle Moton, the men's basketball coach at North Carolina Central, said on ESPN Radio's Sunday Morning he thought college coaches are too often "silent" when it comes to racial injustice despite recruiting black student-athletes to their teams:

Across the country, protesters have gathered to demand an end racial injustice, police violence and systemic racism.

Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney told reporters Monday that wide receiver Justyn Ross would need to undergo spinal surgery for a congenital fusion and is expected to miss the entirety of the 2020 season, according to Ralph D. Russo of the Associated Press and Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports. 

The injury was discovered after Ross missed time in March because of "stinger symptoms":

Swinney added that Ross was "in a great place mentally" despite the injury:

Ross, 20, has been excellent for Clemson the past two seasons, catching 112 passes for 1,865 yards and 17 touchdowns, averaging 16.7 yards per reception. He would have been Trevor Lawrence's top option in the passing game this upcoming season with Tee Higgins in the NFL.

He's a promising NFL prospect, though his injury status will be closely monitored by teams.

B/R's Matt Miller had Ross No. 21 on his 2021 big board, writing the following:

With Higgins gone and Ross injured, Clemson will turn to Amari Rodgers (30 receptions for 426 yards and four touchdowns last year), Joe Ngata (17 catches for 240 yards and three scores) and Frank Ladson Jr. (nine receptions for 128 yards and three touchdowns). 

The Clemson University athletic department announced Tuesday student-athletes who play football, men's basketball or women's basketball can return to the area June 1 as long as they partake in seven days of social distancing at home.

Voluntary workouts for those sports may resume June 8 after an additional week of quarantine. The student-athletes must complete a physical, which will include a COVID-19 test, before taking part in team activities. They will also be screened daily.

Athletic director Dan Radakovich released a statement about the decision:

"We are encouraged to begin the first step in the implementation of our Phase I planning, and appreciate the leadership of our University in helping us prepare for our student-athletes and staff to return in early June. We are confident in our ability to provide a safe environment and have put our energy into that goal. We're encouraged by the progress and remain vigilant as we begin to welcome a limited number of student-athletes back to our facilities."

Clemson's three-phase process is aimed at a gradual increase in the number of people allowed at the sports teams' facilities.

Phase I is only expected to include medical staff and other people responsible for the treatment of the student-athletes while they prepare for Phase II. Coaches will continue to work remotely until Phase II, though they will only be allowed back in "limited numbers" at the outset.

Phase II and Phase III will slowly include more players and staff members until cleared for full capacity practices and meetings.

"No details regarding fall competition are available at this time," the announcement read.

The NCAA Division I Council voted last week to allow voluntary workouts beginning June 1, but provided no update on fall sports schedules, including the 2020 college football season.

NCAA president Mark Emmert said May 8 it's unlikely college sports would resume until campuses were reopened for all students.

"All of the commissioners and every president that I've talked to is in clear agreement: If you don't have students on campus, you don't have student-athletes on campus," he said. "... If a school doesn't reopen, then they're not going to be playing sports. It's really that simple."

The college football season is scheduled to start Aug. 29. The college basketball campaign typically kicks off in early November.

Clemson receiver Justyn Ross will reportedly undergo surgery in early June, according to Grace Raynor of The Athletic. 

Head coach Dabo Swinney last spoke about Ross' neck and shoulder injury in March.

"He got banged up the other day. He's perfectly fine," Swinney said, per Brad Senkiw of Sports Illustrated. "He did all the individuals. They're trying to be precautionary with him because he had some stinger symptoms lingering. He's fine now but they want to make sure there's no bigger issue or anything like that."

Ross led Clemson with 66 catches in 2019, adding 865 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.

With Tee Higgins leaving for the NFL, there were high expectations for Ross going into 2020.

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller listed the wideout as the No. 21 overall prospect in the 2021 NFL draft class.

His presence is also a significant reason Clemson is considered a top contender to win a title next season. Per Caesars Casino, the Tigers are the current favorites to win the championship with +250 odds ($100 bet wins $250).

If he is forced to miss time, Clemson will be left with limited experience at receiver to help out star quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Amari Rodgers is the only other returning player with more than 20 catches in 2019, finishing his junior year with 30 catches for 426 yards and four touchdowns. Joseph Ngata could also see a significant role after a promising freshman season where he totaled 17 catches for 240 yards and three scores.

The Clemson Tigers spare no expense when it comes to impressing recruits.

According to Grace Raynor of The Athletic, the school spent $85,000 of its "$2 million-plus" annual football budget during its 2019 marquee recruiting weekend of Nov. 15-17 with 11 prospects and their families in attendance. As Raynor noted, "from steakhouse dinners to black car service to a luxury hotel—the Tigers did not skimp."

The Tigers also paid for round-trip plane tickets for the prospects and two of their family members, gave the prospects a tour of its South Carolina campus, gave them lower-level tickets for the home game against Wake Forest, a tour of the team's $55 million facility (which includes "an indoor slide to a barbershop, a nap room, a theater, outdoor amenities and a bowling alley") and a visit to head coach Dabo Swinney's house. 

Between a number of catered lunches and dinners to steakhouses, the recruits and their families were also provided with some swanky options.

That included "BBQ bacon cheddar grilled chicken thighs, jumbo lump crab cakes, grilled ribeye with herb compound, whipped truffle garlic butter mashed potatoes, roasted broccoli and oven-roasted maple butternut squash" at a Saturday lunch and "buttermilk fried chicken, chargrilled oysters with fresh bread, a carving station for brown sugar-cumin-rubbed beef tenderloin, creamy steakhouse macaroni and cheese, red beans and rice and brussels sprouts with parmesan cheese and crispy shallots" at dinner that night. 

Clemson spared no expense, and while the team's success in recent years and a huge operational budget is a flex, proponents of paying college athletes could also point to the $85,000 weekend, the program's $2 million-plus budget and Swinney's $9.3 million annual salary as evidence that FBS programs could more than afford to pay the players.

Not every school has those resources, of course, though most programs receive major windfalls from their conference allegiances. The power conferences (ACC, SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-12) all split a base football payout of $66 million with member schools, for instance, with additional money coming from bowl appearances. 

And that's just the football portion of the money that comes from a power conference membership:

Clemson's lavish weekend for recruits is just another reminder, then, of the massive money flowing through college athletics, namely football. How and where that money is distributed—and whether the players deserve a direct payout—remains a major point of contention. 

Highly touted running back Will Shipley committed to Clemson on Tuesday.

"Clemson is just the place for me," Shipley said to Rivals.com's Adam Friedman. "It was the people that make it up, the culture of the locker room, the atmosphere, the game day experience. There are so many things that went into it for me but when looking at the big picture I just didn't see a place that really showed my family and I better."

Shipley is the No. 1 all-purpose back and No. 24 player in the 2021 recruiting class, per 247Sports' composite rankings. The Matthews, North Carolina, native is also the best player in his home state.

As a junior at Weddington High School, he ran for 2,066 yards and 30 touchdowns while catching 34 passes for 582 yards and eight scores.

With the 2019 season approaching, Shipley told the Charlotte Observer's Langston Wertz Jr. he'd take all the time he needed to decide on his next step:

"I'm going to take this season and focus on football. Focus on winning a state championship and then narrow [my college list] down and make it public towards the end of the season. Hopefully, we can come back this year and make it happen again, [send] all the seniors off with another state championship; send them off right."

Shipley achieved his goal as Weddington defeated Lee County High School in the 3AA state championship.

Before the title game, Shipley told Wertz he received a direct message on Instagram from Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey. He also described the All-Pro running back as "obviously someone I try to model my game after."

Comparing anyone to McCaffrey is unfair. He was the Pac-12 Player of the Year and runner-up in the 2015 Heisman Trophy voting.

Based on his numbers from 2019, though, it's not hard to see why Shipley hopes to emulate McCaffrey on the field. He's an elusive runner who posted a 4.46-second 40-yard dash at The Opening in April 2019, per 247Sports. Open up a lane for him and he'll explode into the second level.

Having lined up out wide and at safety, Shipley possesses good instincts as a pass-catcher too. That will be an asset for Clemson if head coach Dabo Swinney wants to spread out the offense with five receivers.

Expect the Tigers to gradually integrate Shipley into the offense as a true freshman. By the time the 2022 season rolls around, he might be poised for a breakout.

The Clemson offense is likely to look a lot different in 2021. Travis Etienne will have graduated, while Trevor Lawrence and Justyn Ross may have left for the greener pastures of the NFL.

Those three are all examples of how Swinney is willing to elevate first-year players if he believes they're good enough. Etienne, Lawrence and Ross assumed meaningful roles for the team right out of the gate.

Between that and Clemson's status as a perennial national title contender, it's easy to see why Shipley committed to the Tigers.

Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence is the early favorite to become the first overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft next year in Cleveland.

Adam Levitan of Establish The Run provided the updated betting odds, which show Lawrence ahead of fellow quarterback Justin Fields of Ohio State and Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell:

The Cincinnati Bengals selected LSU quarterback Joe Burrow with the No. 1 selection in the 2020 draft Thursday night. It marked the third consecutive year and the 15th time in the past 20 years a QB was taken in the top spot.

Lawrence is a strong contender to keep that trend alive next spring.

The 20-year-old Tennessee native took over the Tigers' starting job as a true freshman in 2018 and has posted back-to-back monster statistical seasons. In all, he's completed 65.5 percent of his throws for 6,945 yards with 66 touchdowns and 12 interceptions across 30 appearances.

He also showcased progress as a rusher in 2019 with 563 rushing yards and nine scores on the ground.

Lawrence pushed aside speculation he could sit out the 2020 season in order to preserve his draft stock after Clemson's loss to LSU in last season's National Championship Game.

"Yeah, I don't think so," he told reporters. "I think I just love Clemson. I love college football and whether it's one more year or two more years, whatever it may be, I just love it here. I love doing what I've done. I think it's a unique experience being able to go to school and grow and become a man and get to do it with some of your best friends."

The "Tank for Trevor" campaigns will probably start pretty early in the 2020 season. He's looked like as surefire of a prospect as it gets through two years in college.

Defensive end Korey Foreman decommitted from the Clemson Tigers, The Athletic's Grace Raynor reported Tuesday.

"Distance from home played a factor for the defensive end and California native," Raynor added.

A 5-star recruit, Foreman is 247Sports' top-ranked prospect in the class of 2021.

Foreman committed to Clemson on Jan. 26.

"After the Clemson visit, I was originally supposed to also visit Georgia, Alabama and LSU too," Foreman said in early February, per 247Sports' Greg Biggins. "Last summer, I visited all those schools, but Clemson just felt like home to me. It's where I'm supposed to be and where I felt God leading me."

However, the 6'4", 265-pounder foreshadowed he was questioning his decision over the weekend:

Foreman told TigerNet.com's David Hood on Sunday he was upset with Clemson because of head coach Dabo Swinney's policy that prohibits commits from taking official visits elsewhere. "I feel like I've earned them," Foreman said.

Foreman added:

"I've talked to the coaches and they have explained how they feel about it. They let me know what would happen if I did take a visit. There are some things I need to think about, but that isn't my main focus. My main focus is the first game of my senior season.

...

"Everything is real [with Clemson], and I knew when I got there that it was a great place. I loved talking to the coaches and they have a record of putting guys in the league. So I have some things to think about, but really, my focus is on my high school season."

Foreman said he would be open to taking a visit to Clemson.

247Sports' Charles Power evaluated Foreman on March 31 and compared him to New Orleans Saints All-Pro Cameron Jordan:

"Combines his initial quickness off the line with an array of pass rush moves and skills. Can dip and bend off the edge in addition to walking offensive linemen back with his strong hands and bull rush. Plays for a top high school program in Southern California and faces top competition on a weekly basis. Missed approximately half of his junior season with a knee injury, but showed his reactive quickness and plus play strength prior to going down. Has the skill set to be an ideal edge-setting strong-side defensive end but could potentially reach the size where he could play multiple spots along the defensive line depending on scheme and down and distance. Continues to look like one of the top overall prospects in the 2021 cycle and one of the more talented defensive linemen to come out of Southern California in several cycles."

The Centennial High School product has 27 offers, including from programs closer to home such as USC, Oregon and Arizona State.

High school seniors are allotted five official visits.

Clemson head football coach Dabo Swinney is very confident that the 2020 season will start on time in the fall, despite the uncertainties in all major sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and invoked great moments in United States history to back up his stance: 

Granted, the playing of football doesn't compare to the importance of the other events cited. And other prominent figures in the sport have expressed their doubts.

"In my opinion, until we have a vaccine, where we've really got some control over this, even if this curve is flattened out, this virus is still out there. I'll be shocked, I haven't talked with anybody but I'll be shocked if we have NFL football this fall, if we have college football," ESPN's college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit said last week (h/t Michael Wayne Bratton of Saturday Down South). "I'll be so surprised if that happens."

Herbstreit's comments were met with backlash. Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly, for instance, dismissed those remarks.

"If anybody can really predict what can happen next week, they should be in the stock market. I heard Kirk Herbstreit come out last week and say, 'No way.' Kirk does not know what he's talking about," he said, per Bratton. "Really? For him, you know, talk in those terms, he's not a scientist. He's a college football analyst. We'll let the scientists determine those things."

But the NFL's chief medical officer, Dr. Allen Sills, has also expressed doubts about the NFL season starting in September. 

"As long as we're still in a place where when a single individual tests positive for the virus that you have to quarantine every single person who was in contact with them in any shape, form or fashion, then I don't think you can begin to think about reopening a team sport," he told Judy Battista of NFL.com. "Because we're going to have positive cases for a very long time."

Sills noted that there are a whole slew of issues to consider, from when fans will be allowed to gather en masse again to the amount of time teams will need to prepare before the season begins. 

"There's no way to recreate a four-month offseason program in the span of week or two," he noted. "When you think about resuming something like football, everyone understands there needs to be some time to acclimatize to activity and train back to the level of physical fitness just to be able to think about more football specific work."

And until a vaccine is developed and distributed, there is the chance for a second outbreak of COVID-19 if social distancing measures are disregarded. According to Motoko Rich of the New York Times, Asian countries that had seemingly had their own outbreaks under control fear a second wave of the virus spreading.

The United States currently has the most coronavirus cases in the world (245,601, according to CNN.com), with the White House estimating that as many as 240,000 Americans could die from COVID-19. While there has been some doubt as to the veracity of those numbers, the White House's projections nonetheless underscored the seriousness of the pandemic

And that, in turn, continues to put the continuation of any sport in limbo. Americans may have gone to the moon, but there are no guarantees they'll have football this fall. 

Trevor Lawrence and Marissa Mowry have started a new fundraiser to aid with relief efforts for the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The Clemson quarterback and his girlfriend announced the launch of the official "Trevor Lawrence and Marissa Mowry COVID-19 Relief Fund" on Sunday:

"Marissa and I have created the Fund to help our friends and neighbors in the Cartersville and Upstate South Carolina communities deal with some of the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 situation. We hope others will join us in supporting the many families in need. These are challenging times, and no one should be left behind."

Lawrence and Mowry originally set up a GoFundMe page Monday, but Matt Connolly of The State reported that Clemson's compliance department asked the star quarterback to take it down out of fear it may have violated the NCAA rule prohibiting players from using name, image and likeness for crowdfunding.

The NCAA later said in a statement it did not ask Lawrence to take down the page and applauded him for his efforts in the situation.

Per Elio Velez of the New York Post, the original GoFundMe page raised $2,670 before it was taken down.

The new fundraiser is being managed by the Cartersville-Bartow Community Foundation, with money and gifts eligible for donation.

Lawrence and Mowry also noted they intend to partner with nonprofit centers and will announce how the funds raised get distributed at a later date.