Clemson Football: Clelin Ferrell’s concussion, What does it mean?

Clemson football defensive end Clelin Ferrell suffered a concussion, Dabo Swinney told the media on Thursday. When will he return and what does it mean?

Clemson football starting defensive end Clelin Ferrell suffered a concussion during practice earlier this week.

Head Coach Dabo Swinney told the media on Thursday afternoon that Ferrell will follow basic protocol and then return to full-go once the training staff had cleared him.

Ferrell was practicing in a yellow jersey (non-contact) due to the injury and here’s what Swinney had to say about his injury to the media, according to Tigernet.com.

"“He got a little shaken up the other day. So we put  him into the right protocol. Our trainers do a good job with stuff like that.”"

Clemson football will be counting on Ferrell this season as a valuable member of the team and it begs two questions: When will he return? and What does it mean?

When will he return?

Dabo Swinney, obviously, did not place a timetable on Ferrell’s return. A concussion typically takes anywhere from a week to a month for a healthy athlete, but it depends on a variety of issues.

How mild was the concussion? What are the symptoms? And several other things. The good thing is this: Clemson football’s first game isn’t until September 4th.

That means that Ferrell should still be back before the beginning of the season. I’d expect him to be back full-go in a couple of weeks, but you never want to rush a head injury. I’d much rather him miss the first few weeks of the season and make a full recovery than come back before he is ready.

The Clemson football training staff is very good and they will make sure he is completely ready to go when he does make a return. This is just one of those things where you have to trust the training staff and know that they are going to do what’s in the best interest of the player.

What does it mean?

Unfortunately, Clemson football is already thin at defensive line, as far as depth is concerned. The Tigers already lost Richard Yeargin to a car accident and Scott Pagano, who plays defensive tackle, due to a transfer. I don’t think the Tigers can really suffer too many more losses on the defensive line.

There are plenty of other talents that have yet to make their splash like Chris Register and Xavier Kelly, but you certainly don’t want to lose Ferrell, who is expected to be Clemson’s sack-leader.

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In 2016, Ferrell recorded 44 tackles and six sacks and was named defensive MVP of the Fiesta Bowl in Clemson’s 31-0 win over Ohio State.

We will continue to update you as this progresses and we hear news on Clelin Ferrell and the rest of the Clemson football players who were out with yellow jerseys.