Every year Clemson has one of the best rosters in the country, and 2024 is no different. Here is a brief scouting report on several of the best players for the Tigers.

OFFENSE
 

#2 Cade Klubnik 6’2 210 Junior
Former 5-star prospect out of high school. Had a rough sophomore season as his first year as a starter, throwing 19 TDs and nine INTs. He has five TDs and one INT with 520 yards from two games this year. He had a rough game against Georgia. He didn’t have time in the pocket, and Georgia's defense was swarming. If NC State can recreate that in any way and make Cade uncomfortable, it’ll increase NC State’s chances this weekend drastically in a rowdy Clemson Memorial stadium. 

#7 HB Phil Mafah 6’1 230 Senior
Phil Mafah is a big framed senior back who’s been with Clemson his entire career. There aren’t many running backs with his frame and run with the power he runs with. If he is given space between the tackles he can easily get past the second level. So, it’ll be pivotal for NC State to have great gap discipline against the run. It has to be that way all night for NC State to stall Clemson’s run game. 

#9 TE Jake Briningstool 6’6 240 Senior
Jake Briningstool is another player who has a larger frame for his position. He has been a great safety net for Klubnik in the receiving game. He will continue to be that, and he is also a very capable blocking tight end. So he will be on the field almost every snap at that position because of his versatility. 

#12 WR Bryant Wesco Jr. 6’2 180 Freshman
A former high 4-star recruit out of high school. Wesco Jr. is currently Clemson’s leading receiver as a freshman with four catches for 135 yards and one TD. One of two highly touted recruits in Clemson’s freshman class at this position. Both are tall and can stretch the field vertically. They still don’t have a lot of film on tape because they’ve only played two games, but you can see their potential mostly from the App State game a few weeks ago. 

#1 WR TJ Moore 6’3 200 Freshman
Moore was another highly touted recruit out of high school ranked as a 5-star. He is a little bigger than Bryant Wesco Jr. and he has a very similar skillset as well. His season has started off a little slower due to him and Wesco Jr. not getting as many reps in game as they should be. However, Moore’s ceiling is high. Both of these receivers will be tough to stop for this NC State secondary, especially if either Aydan White and/or Brandon Cisse aren’t available this weekend.

#78 RT Blake Miller 6’6 315 Junior
Blake Miller is a seasoned starting tackle for the Tigers, being a Freshman All-American in the 2022 season and earning an All-ACC selection in the 2023 season. He has played 29 games so far in his career. He is yet to allow a sack or a TFL for the Clemson Tigers.  Davin Vann and Travali Price will have their work cut out for them going up against Blake Miller, who has been a keystone of this Clemson offensive line. 

DEFENSE

#11 DE Peter Woods 6’3 315 Sophomore
Another highly ranked high school recruit for Clemson, just like many other players on this roster. Had just 26 tackles and 2.5 TFLs last year. However, he is off to a solid start with six tackles, one sack, and 2.5 TFLs. He is on pace to have an All-ACC season if he keeps at this pace. He has a mix of size and speed and has improved his run defense a lot this offseason. He’ll be a tough challenge for either Anthony Belton or Jacarrius Peak. 

#3 DE TJ Parker 6’3 265 Sophomore
TJ Parker plays at the opposing side of his counterpart Peter Woods. He is a smaller framed defensive end. He’d be the frame of what you’d want an outside linebacker to be in a Base 3-4 scheme. His size for this nickel 4-2-5 scheme is still solid. He has a lot of twitch and bend coming off the edge. Had a really dominant freshman season with 32 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and 12.5 TFLs, showing strong pash rush ability and being stout against the run. He’ll be the anchor for this Clemson front seven. 

#0 LB Barrett Carter 6’1 230 Senior
Carter is a highly accomplished multi-year starter for the Clemson Tigers at middle linebacker. He was a 2022 All-American and a 2023 All-ACC selection. He brings a lot of experience to this position with 154 career tackles, nine career sacks, 21 career TFLs, three interceptions, and two total forced fumbles. He could’ve gone to the NFL in last year's NFL draft but decided to stay for his Senior year. He is currently projected in the 2nd-3rd round range. My main knocks on him are his pass coverage skills. However, he is a great tackler in open space and is solid against the run, so if he improves his pass coverage skills he’ll be a complete NFL prospect, at least in my eyes. 

#17 LB Wade Woodaz 6’3 235 Junior
Woodaz is by a decent bit the lowest ranked high school recruit out of everyone on this list. However, after a season or two of development, he has earned a starting role for the Tigers at linebacker. He is a bigger backer size-wise than Carter at 6’3 235. Like Carter he is also strong against the run and with tackling in general, so it’ll be tough for NC State on paper to run against this Clemson front seven. 

#47 LB Sammy Brown 6’2 235 Freshman
Sammy Brown is the former #2 ranked linebacker out of high school for this year’s freshman class. He is freakishly athletic for his 6’2 235 lb frame. He reportedly ran a 4.4 40-yard dash according to Maxpreps, along with benching 395 lbs, squating 600 lbs, and having a 40 inch vertical jump. He has all of the physical intangibles you’d want in a linebacker. He still has to prove himself as a college player. So far he has looked the part with nine total tackles, all coming from their week two game against App State.  It’ll be interesting to see how much he plays against NC State this weekend. 

#20 CB Avieon Terrell 5’11 180 Sophomore
You may recognize Avieon Terrell’s last name. That’s because he is the younger brother of Atlanta Falcons starting corner AJ Terrell, who just got a new contract extension with the Falcons. Terrell, being a legacy player for Clemson, has some pretty big shoes to fill at his position. He got some playing time early as a freshman in which he showed a lot of flashes having 19 tackles, four pass deflections, and one interception. He this year already has four pass deflections and seven tackles. As he continues to develop he’ll have to keep playing as much as he can.

Being 5’11 180 he is at a size disadvantage.  However, there are plenty of good NFL corners who are “undersized,” and most of them are either faster or have really good ball/coverage skills. A few examples are Denzel Ward with the Browns and Devon Witherspoon with Seattle Seahawks. So we’ll find out what Avieon Terrell has when he goes against some of the best receivers in the ACC this weekend.