Clemson Football

Expectations are as high as they have ever been for the Clemson Tigers going into the 2019 college football season. 

After winning the national championship in dominant fashion, Dabo Swinney's Tigers are trying to extend their reign atop the sport with Trevor Lawrence in his second year under center. 

Clemson is favored to win the national championship at +200 (bet $100 to win $200), and Lawrence is the Heisman Trophy favorite at +275, per Oddschecker.

While the Tigers have a key piece in Lawrence returning, they have plenty of spots on the depth chart to fill, and Saturday's spring game will give them a chance to look at players set for breakout seasons in 2019.

                                              

2019 Clemson Spring Game Info

Date: Saturday, April 6

Start Time: 2:30 p.m. ET 

TV: ESPN2

Live Stream: Watch ESPN or ESPN app 

                  

After battling with Kelly Bryant for the starting gig under center last spring, Lawrence is in full command of the top spot on the depth chart.

The leadership of the sophomore signal-caller will be relied upon as the Tigers build up their depth after experiencing losses at a few key positions. 

Unfortunately, Lawrence will be without one of his top targets after wide receiver Amari Rodgers suffered a torn ACL during spring practice. 

In 2018, he recorded 575 receiving yards on 55 receptions and produced four touchdowns through the air. 

Saturday's spring game presents an early opportunity for a few players to fill the void left by Rodgers. 

Diondre Overton is one of the wideouts preaching the next-man-up mentality at the position, as he told Matt Connolly of The State. 

"It's a tough task but I had to have the mindset of a couple of guys go down, next guy up," he said. "I've got to be ready, learn, study, put the time in and be ready when my name is called." 

Overton, Cornell Powell and T.J. Chase will be fighting for snaps in the slot role, which is depleted with Rodgers injured and Hunter Renfrow graduated. 

Overton isn't a typical slot receiver with his 205-pound frame, but he's impressed the coaching staff, as co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott noted, per Scott Keepfer of the Greenville News.

"Diondre Overton has been a pleasant surprise," Elliott said. "He jumped in there Day 1. He seized an opportunity. Between him, Cornell and T.J. we'll see who becomes the guy, but I'll tell you what, for a bigger guy he (Overton) has made the transition seamlessly so far." 

While Rodgers' injury opened an unexpected hole on offense, the Tigers have been preparing to fill the gaps on the defensive line for most of the offseason. 

With Austin Bryant, Christian Wilkins, Clelin Ferrell and Dexter Lawrence off to the NFL, the Tigers have to replace all four starting spots on the defensive line. 

It's far from an easy task for defensive coordinator Brent Venables, but the Tigers have plenty of talent at the position. 

Xavier Thomas, KJ Henry and Logan Rudolph are among the starting candidates on the edge, while Jordan Williams and Nyles Pinckney are the favorites to start on the inside, but the pair of defensive tackles are recovering from injuries.

That means we'll see plenty of inexperience at defensive tackle Saturday, and that comes with tempering expectations for now, as Venables told The Athletic's Grace Raynor. 

He said: "As a staff, we had to be very intentional meeting that group where they're at, not expecting them to meet us where we're at, where we finished (in 2018), whether that's having to go a little bit slower or be a little more patient, be a little more encouraging." 

Although the Tigers will be young on the interior, it's hard to feel bad for them since they have plenty of returners at other positions, such as linebacker Isaiah Simmons and safety Tanner Muse. 

The growing pains will show Saturday in the first competitive action for some defensive linemen, but come fall, there will be plenty of trust in the unit to get the job done and help complete the Clemson roster in its quest to repeat as national champion. 

                   

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from ESPN.com.

Clemson spent the entire 2018 season hearing that Alabama was the greatest college football team ever. Then the Tigers throttled the Tide in the national championship game.

Clemson decided to immortalize its 2018 team as the "best ever." TMZ Sports obtained images of the championship rings given to Tigers players Wednesday. The rings are inscribed with the phrase "best ever" and the 44-16 score of Clemson's beatdown of Alabama:

Clemson's Epic National Championship Rings Include Alabama Shade https://t.co/SoNMx1Iz0n

— TMZ Sports (@TMZ_Sports) April 4, 2019

The two trophies on the front of the ring represent the program's two College Football Playoff wins, both of which have come against Alabama.

Alabama rampaged through the regular season in 2018 while Clemson was considered a solid but less dominant team. But the Tigers systematically dismantled Nick Saban and Co., continuing a series that's seen the two programs meet each of the last four seasons in the Playoff—three times in the title game.

He's the perfect candidate. The player who could make the move and take the money and begin a paradigm shift that would change the way college football does business.

"That's crazy to even think about," says Clemson receiver Justyn Ross.

But for this star freshman—a player too young for the NFL, too good for college football and too aware of what can happen in this world to rely on opportunity—this couldn't be more real.

The XFL will begin its reincarnation next spring with more integrity and less theatrics—and $500 million in the bank. The league says it will draw its talent pool from college football and even sign players straight out of high school.

That's where Ross and other NCAA underclassmen, who aren't available to the NFL because of its longstanding draft rule, come into the picture.

To be eligible for the NFL draft, a player must be three years removed from his graduating high school class, and currently most of those who can't apply for early entry are trudging through wasted earning years. But for how long? Those players can now sign with the XFL and make more money in one spring than the value of a five-year college scholarship—and still eventually get drafted by the NFL.

XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck sent a letter last year to agents informing them the XFL could pay as much as $200,000 a year for elite players.

"The XFL isn't paying that premium salary for NFL castoffs or guys that have been cut," one agent tells Bleacher Report. "They're aiming directly at college football players."

Players like Ross.

Ross arrived at Clemson as the nation's hottest wide receiver recruit. His speed and his 6'4", 205-pound frame made him a critical recruit for both Alabama and Auburn, but neither could keep him at home. And then after a slow start at Clemson, his impact was staggering. 

It was more than just being a deep threat for star quarterback Trevor Lawrence. His big-play skill after the catch and ability to high-point 50-50 balls already have him among the elite at the position. At 19 years old.

"He can be as good as he wants to be," says Clemson co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott. "As good as anyone we've had."

Think about that: Sammy Watkins, Mike Williams, DeAndre Hopkins. All first-round NFL picks. And no one from that group was close to Ross' bloated 21.7 yards per catch last season—a number that was nine yards per catch better than Hopkins' freshman season, seven better than Watkins' and six better than Williams'.

One NFL scout told Bleacher Report that Ross was "one of the two best players on the field" in January's College Football Playoff National Championship Game, in which he had six catches for 153 yards and a touchdown (after having six catches for 148 yards and two touchdowns in the semifinal). As a freshman. Lawrence, a future first overall pick, was the only better pro prospect.

So what's left to accomplish?

Thus the XFL question.

---

The question is posed, and Ross reveals what many in college and pro football already believe. "There are guys right now in college football that would take that money and run," he says.

Asked if he'd be tempted, Ross says: "Yes and no. Because if you automatically go to a league out of high school, eventually you can get your college education. But at least being on that scholarship for one year, it will give you the idea of how important it is and why you should come back and get your education.

"I'd probably…"

He stops here because, well, the money is tempting, and the idea of playing and not getting paid isn't too appealing. And because…

"Wait," he says. "My mom wouldn't let me do that, anyway. … She'd kill me!"

"He's right about that," Charay Franklin says with a laugh.

Franklin didn't go through all she did for her son to be tempted by short-term gain and ignore long-term value. Pregnant at 15, she had Justyn at 16 and two years later—after graduating high school in Phenix City, Alabama—joined the Navy to give him a better life.

Weeks after completing basic training, 9/11 happened, and the world changed for everyone—including a two-and-a-half-year-old toddler whose mother began the first of four 18-month deployments over the next 15 years that would shape who and what he is and has become.

Franklin didn't go through all of that, didn't miss years of her son's life and birthdays and football and basketball games and his recruitment, to do anything other than stick to the plan: graduate in three years from Clemson and then go to the NFL.

If the XFL plan were in place a year ago, though, the decision might have been a lot tougher. Two games into his freshman year, Ross was ready for a change of scenery.

He wasn't playing, he didn't feel wanted, and he wanted out. Then again, other players in similar situations won't have Charay Franklin on the other end of a 2 a.m. come-to-Jesus phone call.

"He wanted to come home. He told me, 'Mom, I can go to Chattahoochee Valley Community College and they'll give me a basketball scholarship,'" Franklin says. "I told him you're not going anywhere. You're going to stick it out and work hard and when your time comes, you're going to show everyone what you're all about."

---

At that point, it wasn't up for debate. Franklin said stay, and her son did.

"He has a strong mom, a great mom," says Clemson coach Dabo Swinney, who lived much of his childhood and young adult life with a strong single mother who shaped his life.

When you're a single mother and your life is consumed by making your son's life better, you're not taking no for an answer. And this wasn't the first time for Franklin.

When she was in Kuwait for her last deployment during Ross' junior year, she figured out a way to watch his high school football games. Her deployments when Ross was two and six were harder because it was the early age of internet communications, and if communications were down, she'd go weeks without emails to and from her son and her mother Annette, who was with him.

But this was different. There was a time change, and she'd have to forgo sleep for football. So she stood outside the barracks at 3 a.m. and had her friends show his games on Facebook Live.

She eventually missed much of her son's hotly contested recruitment between Alabama, Auburn and Clemson, but her parameters for his decision were simple: The school has to be within a six-hour-drive radius of Phenix City. And the three-year college plan.

The terms were non-negotiable.

So when his career at Clemson started out slowly and he wanted to leave, it's not really surprising that coming home to Phenix City wasn't an option. Why in the world would the idea of cashing in on his athletic ability with a new football league before graduating from Clemson be any different?

But understand this: These scenarios of diminished playing time and leaving school unfold all over the country at every FBS school. Elite recruits don't play early, and then they transfer.

And without his mother's guidance, Ross might have bolted—like so many do.

Listen to Ross talk about his first two weeks during the 2018 season, and insert any elite recruit at any major college football program—and understand the idea of the XFL poaching those players from the college talent pool isn't as far-fetched as it seems.

"I was losing confidence at first. I wasn't playing as much as I wanted to," Ross says. "I asked my mom, 'Did they really want me like they said they wanted me? Or were they selling me a dream?' I wasn't trusting the process. I was ready to play, but I realized I had a lot more learning to do before they could put me out there to play on this type of stage."

He's asked, "So can you see how other players, who may not have the support system you do, could be tempted by the XFL?"

"If [the XFL] is offering that kind of money, that's hard for an 18- or 19-year-old to turn down," Ross says. "If you really need that money, oh yeah, go do that. Something could happen. You can get hurt. Anything can happen. You have to take care of yourself because it can be over just like that."

That, more than anything, is the elephant in the room for college football. The sport gives athletes an average of $5,000 per year in full cost-of-attendance stipends, a pittance in comparison to the billions in combined annual revenue of the Power Five conferences.

The NCAA, too, is holding out on allowing student-athletes to market their name, image and likeness (the case is working its way through courts).

"It all depends on the viability of the XFL," one Power Five coach tells Bleacher Report. "All it takes is a couple of big-name guys to take that money, and others will follow. Once that happens, how does the NCAA respond? Do we continue to allow talented young players to leave, or do we up the ante with stipends or allow them to market themselves or both?"

---

There is no one and nothing more important in Ross' life than his mother. Not football, not some plan that prioritizes earning money over earning a degree.

"She is my inspiration," he says. "What she went through for me, what she has done for me in my life, I just can't even explain how important she is."

He's asked, "Do you remember when you were 15 and 16 and what you were doing?"

"Yeah, I was playing basketball and football and doing kid things. Didn't have to care about anything," he responds.

He's told, "Now imagine her being that age and being pregnant."

"I've never really thought about it like that," he says. "She changed her life for me. If she decides to do something different…man, I'm not here."

If she didn't step in last fall, Ross wouldn't be where he is now, either. Those 1,000 yards receiving and nine touchdowns and an unthinkable 21.7 yards per catch wouldn't have been part of Clemson's run to its second national title in three seasons.

In fact, Clemson's national title likely wouldn't have even happened, and Lawrence's rapid development might have taken another season. Ross would have been more concerned with mid-range jump shots at Chattahoochee Junior College.

"He has just begun reaching his potential," Lawrence says of Ross. "A guy his size and his speed. Some of the things he does on the field athletically just make you shake your head."

Ross arrived at Clemson last summer and went through his first fall camp while trying to break into a deep wide receiver corps. In the first week of practice, former Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant threw a fade to Ross, who leaped over two defenders, twisted his body and made a highlight catch.

"We knew what we had," Elliott says. "But when you see that stuff from a freshman in the first couple of practices, yeah, that gets you excited."

Four months later, Ross had his best game of the season in the biggest game of the season.

And by the end of the 2019 season, he'll be at the top of the list for the XFL.

Not that it matters.

"I think you just have to be patient," Ross says. "Just have more sense of your life after football. You can go to [the XFL] and do the numbers. You can get your endorsements and your money that you can fall back on after your career, but that's not happening for everyone. You're going to need something else to fall back on.

"Besides, my mom isn't going to let me leave college without my degree."

There's no debate about that.

Clemson receiver Amari Rodgers will "likely" miss the 2019 season after suffering a torn ACL in Monday's practice, according to Scott Keepfer of the Greenville News.

He tweeted his thoughts on the injury Tuesday:

God gives his toughest soldiers the toughest tasks.. I’ll be back better than ever, believe that💯🙏🏾 https://t.co/eKexryUXn2

— Amari Rodgers3️⃣ (@arodgers_3) March 26, 2019

Rodgers was carted off the practice field Monday and an MRI revealed that he would require surgery.

The rising junior is coming off an impressive year for the Tigers, totaling 55 catches for 575 yards and four touchdowns. Only Tee Higgins had more receptions for the squad, which won the national championship with a 15-0 record.

Rodgers was also the primary punt returner with 299 return yards and a score.

The Tennessee native was initially a 4-star recruit, considered the 16th-best receiver in his class by 247Sports.

Unfortunately, Clemson might be without a key player who likely would have been a go-to option in the slot for Trevor Lawrence.

The good news is there is still plenty of depth returning at the position, with Higgins, Justyn Ross and Derion Kendrick capable of putting up big numbers in the upcoming season.

The Clemson Tigers have hit a bump in their road to defending their national title as wide receiver Amari Rodgers has been diagnosed with a torn ACL, per Matt Fortuna of The Athletic. 

Earlier Tuesday, Fortuna relayed that Clemson feared Rodgers tore his ACL during practice Monday. Rodgers' MRI on Tuesday confirmed those fears. 

Rodgers caught two balls for 30 yards, including a 26-yard reception, in Clemson's 44-16 national championship victory over Alabama. In 15 games as a sophomore last season, Rodgers racked up 55 catches for 575 yards and four touchdowns as well as 39 returns for 299 yards and a touchdown. 

His sophomore season was a vast improvement over just 19 catches for 123 yards and no touchdowns across 12 games in 2017.

Following news of his injury, Rodgers tweeted: "God gives his toughest soldiers the toughest tasks.. I'll be back better than ever, believe that." Justyn Ross, a Clemson sophomore wideout, also took to Twitter: 

Small thing to a Giant .. we got you bro 💯💙 https://t.co/Xx2OCYIENG

— Justyn Ross (@_jross8) March 26, 2019

Clemson has been dubbed Wide Receiver U behind the three-pronged attack of Rodgers, Ross and junior Tee Higgins. That nickname dates back to when DeAndre Hopkins (Houston Texans) and Sammy Watkins (Kansas City Chiefs) were dominating in Death Valley. 

On the heels of quarterback Trevor Lawrence's breakout freshman season, expectations are mountainous for him and this receiving corps.  

While Higgins and Ross became the highlight reels throughout Clemson's College Football Playoff run, Rodgers provides an entirely different skill set for this offense that is just as crucial. 

Hunter Renfrow's departure for the NFL draft made him next in line as the primary slot receiver at 5'10" and 215 pounds to balance out Higgins and Ross, who are both 6'4". 

Rodgers' production will undoubtedly be missed. However, Clemson doesn't have the Wide Receiver U reputation for nothing. On Monday night, according to Larry Williams of Rivals' Tiger Illustrated, head coach Dabo Swinney dubbed receivers Joseph Ngata and Frank Ladson "as ready as any freshmen we've had come through here."

Once Rodgers fully recovers, this group will be even more dangerous than before.  

J.P. Losman hasn't appeared in an NFL regular-season game since 2011, but that apparently didn't stop one team from at least inquiring about his desire to return to the league.

Losman joined the Clemson Tigers as a coaching intern in 2017 and took part throwing passes to Tigers wide receivers and defensive backs at the school's pro day. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported a team was sufficiently enamored with Losman enough to discuss a possible comeback.

Perhaps the team official mistook Losman for current Clemson starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence. Otherwise, the comment is pretty baffling unless it was said largely in jest.

The California native celebrated his 38th birthday Tuesday, and his NFL career is remembered fondly by few. He made 45 appearances, throwing for 6,211 yards, 33 touchdowns and 34 interceptions.

The Tulane graduate also has the misfortune of being selected in the first round of a draft that included Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger and Matt Schaub. Even Luke McCown, a fourth-rounder in 2004, managed to stick around the league longer than Losman.

The NFL is a copycat league, so it would be great if a team actually signed Losman and he proved to be a success. Losman would open the door for so many long-forgotten quarterbacks who flamed out after brief, underwhelming careers.

Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney jokingly told Duke men's basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski on the latter's SiriusXM show Thursday that Blue Devil superstar forward Zion Williamson has a spot on the Tigers waiting for him:

The Duke men's basketball Twitter account (h/t Myron Medcalf of ESPN.com) posted a clip:

If Zion played 🏈: TE? LB? QB? RB? All of them?

Dabo Swinney and The Goat discuss. 🤔🤔🤔🤔

For more: 6 PM ET (Sirius/XM Ch. 84) pic.twitter.com/0nQi1ApXPl

— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) February 14, 2019

"I'd put [Williamson] at tight end or wideout or [defensive] end or wherever he wanted to play," Swinney said. "We might even put him at quarterback."

Krzyzewski responded that Clemson could run the Wildcat offense with the 6'7", 285-pound Williamson at quarterback, to which Swinney replied: "Put in the Wildcat, no doubt."

Clemson is doing just fine without the freshman superstar and likely No. 1 NBA draft pick, who grew up in Spartanburg, South Carolina—about an hour or so from the university.

The 15-0 Tigers finished the 2018 season as national champions, and they'll have superstar quarterback Trevor Lawrence for at least two more seasons. 

Williamson is doing quite well for himself on the hardwood. He's averaging 22.0 points on 68.0 percent shooting in addition to 9.3 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 2.0 blocks per game.

The 22-2 Blue Devils are ranked second in the nation and will host North Carolina State on Saturday.    

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said Saturday that the banned substances that caused the suspensions of defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence, tight end Braden Galloway and offensive lineman Zach Giella could have been accidentally provided by the school.

According to Grace Raynor and Gene Sapakoff of The Post and Courier, Swinney didn't rule out the possibility of a mistake on Clemson's end:

"Oh yeah, I mean, there's a chance that it could come from anything. They're going to test everything and look at everything. And that's the problem. As you really look at this stuff, it could be a contaminant that came from anything, that was something that was cleared and not a problem, and all of a sudden, it becomes there was something."

Lawrence, Galloway and Giella were suspended and not eligible to play during the College Football Playoff last season after testing positive for ostarine.

The three players tested have been suspended for the 2019 season pending appeal, although Lawrence will avoid the punishment after declaring for the 2019 NFL draft.

Lawrence was highly productive in his three seasons at Clemson.

He registered 62 tackles and 6.5 sacks as a freshman in 2016, 33 tackles and 2.0 sacks in 2017 and then 36 tackles and 1.5 sacks in 2018.

Despite playing without Lawrence, the Tigers beat Notre Dame in the CFP semifinal and then blew out Alabama 44-16 in the CFP National Championship.

In his latest 2019 NFL mock draft, Bleacher Report's Matt Miller projected that the Los Angeles Chargers will select Lawrence with the No. 60 overall pick in the second round of the draft.

Swinney will be forced to completely reshape his defensive line in 2019, as Lawrence, Clelin Ferrell, Austin Bryant, Christian Wilkins and Albert Huggins all entered the NFL draft.

President Donald Trump hosted the Clemson football team, which won the national championship over Alabama, at the White House on Jan. 14.

On Tuesday, Michael Harriot of The Root reported that the majority of black players on the team did not make the visit because of Trump.

"The Root spoke with three black Clemson players who each separately confirmed that many players, both black and white, had no interest in making the trip," Harriot wrote. "All three acknowledged that Donald Trump was the reason they chose not to attend."

Harriot noted that some black players cited "racism and their disdain for Trump's divisive politics" as reasons for not going. All told, 74 percent of the team's African American players did not go, per the report.

The Tigers aren't the only team where numerous members (or the entire franchise) has not made the visit during the Trump administration.

The Golden State Warriors have not gone despite winning the NBA Finals in 2017 and 2018, and the Philadelphia Eagles' Super Bowl visit was canceled.

Per ESPN.com, "a large group of Eagles players had decided not to attend, including most—if not all—of the black players, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter. In fact, five or fewer Eagles players committed to attend the White House ceremony, a source told ESPN's Don Van Natta."

Furthermore, the North Carolina men's basketball and South Carolina women's hoops teams did not go in 2017, per Jerry Bembry of The Undefeated.

Bembry noted that other players have declined invites prior to Trump, such as Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison. But the practice has become more common in the past two years.

Looking ahead, the 2018 World Series champion Boston Red Sox have a visit scheduled, although some players will not be attending. Notably, 2018 American League MVP Mookie Betts has declined an invite, per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe. Staff ace Chris Sale, World Series MVP Steve Pearce and others will be going to the White House. That trip is "expected to happen" on May 9, per Darren Hartwell of NBC Sports Boston.

Late in the third quarter of the national championship, Clemson holds a 37-16 lead. Comfortable, sure, yet Nick Saban and Alabama know this stage. It's not over.

Star freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence is having a tremendous game, slicing a Crimson Tide defense like few have ever done. On this 3rd-and-9, however, the ball is drifting behind his intended target. 

But that target is Justyn Ross.

He leaps, extends a hand over Alabama cornerback Josh Jobe and snatches this pass. Seriously, the ball hardly moves from the moment it arrives in his grasp. Four plays later, Clemson scores another touchdown and kicks the extra point for a 44-16 advantage.

It's over.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dd6KFtFtN2w

This sequence, though, almost never had a chance to happen.

During his freshman year at Central High School in Phenix City, Alabama, Ross didn't want to play football anymore. Instead, as he told Matt Connolly of The State in October, basketball had his attention.

Fortunately for Clemson, football coach Jamey DuBose persuaded the talented athlete to stick it out.

"He walked in my office and told me he didn't want to play anymore," DuBose told Connolly. "I stood in front of the door and told him he wasn't going to ever walk out because he'd be making the biggest mistake of his entire life."

Within four years, Ross is on the brink of becoming a college football icon. His production is already worthy of the label.

As a true freshman, the 6'4", 210-pound wideout grabbed 46 passes for a team-high 1,000 yards. Ross scored nine touchdowns, and his 21.7-yard average per catch ranked fourth among qualifiers in the Football Bowl Subdivision. He ranked in the top six nationally of catches for at least 30, 40 and 50 yards.

The only comparable players returning for 2019 are 2018 Biletnikoff Award winner Jerry Jeudy from Alabama and Oklahoma State's Tylan Wallace―a second-team AP All-American. Those rising juniors are the class of the position in college football.

Along with teammate Tee Higgins, Ross is closing the gap.

While no one reaches 1,000 yards by accident, Ross didn't simply demolish weak teams. Sure, his first career 100-yard display came against Georgia Southern. But his two best performances of the season were under the brightest lights.

Against Notre Dame in the Cotton Bowl, Ross set career highs with six catches, 148 yards and two scores. During the national championship, he grabbed six passes for 153 yards and a touchdown.

Consider this, though: Ross hardly played a full season.

Four games into 2018, per Anna Hickey of 247Sports, he'd managed only 58 snaps―not routes, snaps. Ross gradually held a larger role, but his statistical ceiling is far from reached.

According to Pro Football Focus, he led the FBS in yards per route run.

That is a strong collective of wide receivers, led by Justyn Ross, who ran 4.98 yards per route this season. pic.twitter.com/llCTGquzjc

— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 13, 2019

Impressive, right? Given that he totaled 1,000 receiving yards, that number also means Ross ran fewer than 15 routes per game.

In 2019, Ross will be a fixture in the starting lineup. That, by itself, should lead to an increase in production. He'll likely garner a larger target share now that everyone's favorite AARP member, Hunter Renfrow, has finally run out of eligibility.

Development isn't necessarily linear, but Ross should improve. Lawrence is potentially a legend at quarterback, and the two's clearly apparent on-field connection isn't going to disappear.

Plus, Lawrence will have a greater impact next season. In 2018, he served as the backup to Kelly Bryant through four weeks. Throw in an injury-shortened fifth game, and the freshman quarterback was basically Clemson's full-time quarterback for only 10 appearances.

Despite that, Lawrence racked up 3,280 yards and 30 touchdowns to only four interceptions. Just think what he can accomplish as the undisputed No. 1 on the depth chart.

And that's the guy throwing Ross the football. He's still growing as a receiver and earning his place at Clemson, yet Ross is already college football's premier big-play weapon.

It's over.

          

All recruiting information via 247Sports' composite rankings. Stats from NCAA.com, cfbstats.com or B/R research. Follow Bleacher Report CFB Writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.