Replacing first round pick, Mike Williams will be a tall task for the Clemson football program. Luckily, rising junior Deon Cain has quietly been one of the most explosive wide outs in all of college football since arriving in Death Valley.
Must Read: Film Room Spotlight - Tyrone Crowder vs. Mitch Hyatt
Clemson traditionally has smaller, slot-build wide receivers and long, 9-man wide receivers. Deon Cain is neither of the two. He is very fast, yet, much bigger than a traditional slot and he is not as physically imposing as former Tigers, Mike Williams and Martavis Bryant.
Regardless if Cain fits the physical mold of a Clemson wide receiver, he can play with the best of them. During his two seasons at Clemson, Cain has recorded 72 receptions for 1,308 yards and 14 touchdowns. The most telling statistic from Cain’s first two seasons in Death Valley is his yards per reception. As a freshman, Cain led the Tigers with 17.12 yards per reception. Again as a sophomore, Cain led Clemson with an eye-popping, 19.05 yards per reception.
In each of Cain’s two seasons at Clemson he was able to stretch defenses vertically with his gamebreaking speed. 2017 could spell much of the same for the 6-foot-1, 210 pound speedster.
Film Review
In this play vs. Pittsburgh, Cain is splitting the distance between the numbers and the hash. The Panthers cornerback is walked up in press man and the near safety is sitting nine yards off the ball, inside the hash. Cain steps on the toes of the opposing cornerback and uses his hands to create separation. Cain’s speed has the corner beat immediately and the near safety is too slow to help over the top.
Florida State is one of the more traditionally aggressive defenses in the country. The Seminoles have physical defensive backs, who play primarily press-man coverage. Deon Cain ate the Seminoles up in their 2016 contest. On this play, Cain uses his feet to freeze the Florida State’s Marcus Lewis off the line of scrimmage. Then he uses a small swim move to get the Lewis’ hands off of him. Like a veteran receiver, Cain then stacks the Lewis to ensure he has no chance of making a play on the ball.
Cain is deadly on screen plays. In high school, Cain played wildcat quarterback. From that he gained tremendous vision with the ball in his hands, on top of his elite speed. Here against Alabama, Cain is able to elude multiple defenders that were not in his direct line of sight. He has the uncanny ability to make people miss in space. This play changed the entire momentum of the game for Clemson.
Here vs. Florida State Cain is not asked to do much, however, his dangerous speed is on full display. Cain is patient during his route and once he catches it he accelerates past the entire defense. Most impressive is the fact that Cain was able to leave Jalen Ramsey – one of college football’s most explosive athletes – in the dust.
2017?
Cain should see a significant uptick in his production next season, so long as the Tigers find a viable starter at quarterback. Being the featured wide receiver will allow Cain to get the amount of touches necessary to take over a game. With his speed and big-play ability, Cain should be able to carry this Clemson offense in 2017.
Next: 10 highest rated recruits Clemson has signed under Dabo Swinney