Clemson football doesn’t develop football players, they develop leaders.
Most athletes are simply seen as “jocks” or entertainers and for the longest time Clemson football players have been seen as “just football players”. What has become very obvious over the last two months to everyone outside the Clemson family is that head coach Dabo Swinney is also developing leaders.
Over the last 72 hours, Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence has gotten a lot of publicity for his outspoken leadership in the current climate of college football, but there are also guys like running back Darien Rencher and linebacker Mike Jones Jr.who have been just as instrumental in many things behind the scenes.
Leaders emerging from the shadows of Clemson football are nothing new and shouldn’t a surprise.
If you have paid any attention to the programs that Clemson football has under its roof, they are very intentional with how they develop players off the field and provide many opportunities for player growth.
Darien Rencher: "There's been a lot of rhetoric out there -- I don't think we're trying to revolt as much as we're trying to merge together and unite."
— Grace Raynor (@gmraynor) August 10, 2020
Plenty of Clemson football leadership opportunities
Programs such as the PAW Journey Ambassadors, senior council, Swinney council all teach players how to work with others, how to communicate effectively and learn how to effect change in an articulate manner.
Learning these skills at 18-22 puts those well ahead of the game of life as well all know seasoned adults who lack the ability to do this.
There are some that believe that changing the social media policy may be a bad thing and will point to all the success that the team has had over the last six seasons or so since players started to adopt that policy.
WATCH: As he's been many times at Clemson, @D_Rench_ was impressively thoughtful and insightful in speaking with the media.
— Cam Gaskins (@CamGaskinsTV) August 11, 2020
Here's his closing thoughts after a whirlwind 24 hours.
"A year that was meant for bad, we can turn into something really good." pic.twitter.com/nHYnIIG49s
However, when you sit back and think about the players at Clemson, they are guys that have grown up with social media being the main cog of communication and part of growing up is learning how to manage your time effectively without allowing yourself to be consumed at all times like many are.
Seeing Clemson players at the forefront of the college football movement should not surprise anyone, Coach Swinney and his staff have been preparing them for this their entire careers. While most of them will not get the publicity that Trevor Lawrence receives but that doesn’t make them less of a leader or less important to the change we see taking place in college football.