Clemson Football: 5-star Will Shipley is the next Christian McCaffrey

The Clemson football program added an explosive play-maker to its 2021 recruiting class when 5-star RB Will Shipley announced his commitment.

5-star RB Will Shipley announced his commitment Tuesday afternoon, becoming the next great play-maker to join the Clemson football program.

Shipley, a 5-foot-11, 198-pound all-purpose running back, is ranked as the No. 24 overall player in the nation and the No. 1 all-purpose running back in the country. He is also considered the No. 1 player in the state of North Carolina, according to the 247 Sports’ Composite Player Rankings.

Shipley chose Clemson over Notre Dame.

The Tigers already had one running back commitment in the 2021 class in 4-star Phil Mafah, but were holding a special spot for Shipley.

It’s intriguing to think about the prospect of the 2021 Clemson football roster when looking at the running back room. The Tigers will have Shipley (5-star freshman), Demarkcus Bowman (5-star), Phil Mafah (4-star freshman), Lyn-J Dixon (4-star senior), Kobe Pryor (3-star), Chez Mellusi (4-star) and Michel Dukes (3-star) all on the depth chart, though we might see some attrition in the form of a transfer or two before it’s all said and done.

That being said, Shipley is going to be used much differently compared to some of the other running backs on the roster.

He has been consistently compared to Christian McCaffrey because of his explosiveness, play-making ability and pass-catching skill. He can line up in the backfield and be a threat in both the running game and passing game. He can also line up in the slot and be an effective wide receiver threat.

Shipley has the frame to add a little more weight and is going to be a guy who can come in and make an immediate impact, but will get better over the course of his Clemson football career.

With his announcement, the Tigers have 10 commitments are now ranked No. 4 in the 247 Sports’ Composite Team Rankings.