CLEMSON, S.C. — The Clemson Tigers football team held its second practice of the 2023 spring on a sun-splashed Tuesday.
The first five periods were open to the media. Here are a few observations from the Clemson offense:
— There are noticeably a few changes to how the Tigers start practice. Right when they broke up for position drills, the receivers ran to the far field with the quarterbacks and ran routes into the end zone for several minutes. New offensive coordinator Garrett Riley told the WRs this will be the norm to start practice.
— During the tempo drills where Clemson reps three offensive and defensive units, all three freshmen offensive linemen – Ian Reed, Harris Sewell and Zack Owens – repped with the second team.
— Speaking of Owens, he is a mountain of a man. He’s listed at 6-foot-7, 375 pounds. He’s probably a bit heavier than that weight right now, but in a group of very large individuals, he clearly stands out.
— Seeing running back Phil Mafah wearing No. 7 instead of No. 26 is still taking some getting used to. He took up the number left behind by Kobe Pace, who transferred during the offseason.
— Cade Klubnik once again was the quarterback of the first-team offense during tempo drills. Hunter Helms was No. 2 for the second day and Chris Vizzina was third. Transfer Paul Tyson still has his thumb wrapped and can only simulate throwing as he can’t grip the ball.
— The freshman Vizzina was (non-contact) sacked multiple times Monday. He was better about getting rid of the ball Tuesday but still held onto it too long after one play, and it was blown dead in the backfield.
— Redshirt freshman RB Keith Adams Jr. has built his body to look like the rest of the rushers on the team. He’s an intriguing player when the pads get put on.
— WR Noble Johnson is the only freshman from the 2023 recruiting class on campus, and he’s got a lot to learn. But his body type is more in line with what the Tigers are looking for at 6-foot-3, 205 pounds. He looked maybe a touch heavier than that, which is a good sign.
Want to join in on the discussion? 100% FREE! Interact with fellow Tiger fans and hear directly from publisher Zach Lentz, deputy editor Brad Senkiw, recruiting analyst Jason Priester and staff writer Will Vandervort on any subject. Click here to become a member of the ALL CLEMSON message board community today!
Do us a HUGE favor and like, subscribe and follow us on social media:
►LIKE us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/allclemson
►SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/c/AllClemson
►FOLLOW All Clemson on Twitter:https://twitter.com/All_Clemson