One clear takeaway from the season-opening Clemson football game
We at Rubbing the Rock will be breaking down the season-opening win for Clemson football over Wake Forest throughout the weekend and into next week, but there is one key takeaway that simply can’t wait to be discussed.
What is it?
Clemson football freshman DE Myles Murphy is an absolute monster.
There have been freshmen come through the Clemson football program who have made immediate impacts before, but none may be quite as dominant in the trenches than what we saw from Myles Murphy in Game 1 against the Demon Deacons.
Myles Murphy is going to be a special Clemson football player right now and for years to come
Murphy’s fellow freshman counterpart Bryan Bresee was explosive and made some big-time plays during the game against Wake Forest, as well, but there was just something noticeably impressive about Murphy, in particular.
Clemson defensive ends have typically taken time to develop. See Shaq Lawson, Vic Beasley and Clelin Ferrell as examples, but that’s simply not the case with Murphy.
Instead, the freshman came out Saturday night and was dominant against that Wake Forest offensive line. He came up with multiple sacks, several tackles for loss, and was in the backfield all night long.
Murphy is noticeably bigger than his teammates at defensive end and he just sticks out like a sore thumb when you see him line up along the defensive line. But for his size, he’s not slow by any means.
Instead, Murphy shows this elite blend of athleticism, explosiveness and physicality. And those skills are going to be on display throughout the rest of this season and for the years to come while he is in the Clemson football program.
It’s going to be exciting to see how Murphy and his teammate Bresee develop over the coming weeks, but it’s clear that the Tigers have monsters on their hands when it comes to their freshmen defensive linemen, in particular when it comes to Murphy.