Three transfers that Clemson football could consider in 2021
The Clemson football program is making a few subtle changes in how it will operate moving forward and one of those is the consideration of transfers from the NCAA Transfer Portal.
Dabo Swinney has made a few moves to his Clemson football coaching staff, which included moving C.J. Spiller to RB Coach and moving Tony Elliott to TE Coach. With Elliott now coaching tight ends, Danny Pearman will move to an off-field role that will consist of evaluating in-house talent and evaluating the NCAA Transfer Portal.
We don’t expect Clemson football to make many offers to transfers in this current cycle and it also shouldn’t be expected that the Tigers will begin recruiting out of the portal regularly. That being said, there still is talent to be evaluated and that’s exactly what Pearman will be tasked with doing moving forward.
Here’s a look at three players on the transfer market that the Tigers could consider.
3. OL TJ Storment
T.J. Storment started the last six games of the season for the TCU Horned Frogs and there was a considerable improvement on the offensive line when he was on the field in both rushing yards and in sack rate.
Storment- a 6-foot-7, 325-pounder- could come in and make an impact on that Clemson offensive line in a big way.
He has experience transferring over the past few years- going from Old Dominion to Fullerton College to Colorado State and then to TCU- but that has to do with him looking to move up and give himself the best chance at making it to the NFL.
He would bring a physicality to the offensive line and would be a guy who absolutely could contribute at both tackle or guard, depending upon where the Tigers needed him.
It’s unclear how he would fit in culture wise and that certainly would need to be evaluated, but he’s likely the top transfer option in terms of offensive line remaining in this cycle.
2. S/LB Jordan Moore
Clemson has plenty of talent and depth in the defensive backfield, but none of those guys have proven to be a model of consistency yet.
We’ve seen bright spots from a bunch of different guys like Nolan Turner, Lannden Zanders, Derion Kendrick, Andrew Booth Jr., Sheridan Jones, Fred Davis and Mario Goodrich. That being said, none have taken the step of becoming a consistent defensive back who can be relied upon all the time.
Jordan Moore- from Houston- is not necessarily going to be that guy, either.
That being said, he is a linebacker/safety hybrid who could provide a bit more athleticism and physicality on the defense. If you’re looking to make the defense more athletic, you may very well want another hybrid-type guy to go along with Mike Jones Jr., Trenton Simpson and Barrett Carter. That’s where he could come into play.
We’re not saying that Moore is the answer by any means, but he’d be a player that Pearman certainly could evaluate.
1. TE Arik Gilbert
Former 5-star TE Arik Gilbert is a name that every single Clemson football fan has probably already heard quite a few times between now and when he was in high school.
Gilbert announced that he’d be transferring from LSU and all indications point to him going to Georgia. That being said, there’s nothing wrong with Clemson putting its name in the hat.
The Tigers opened up their considerations for transfers because of names like Gilbert. He was the No. 1 tight end option for Clemson just a year ago and there’s no doubt that Clemson wants to take a stab at players like him who will continue to come about for years to come for whatever reason.
As we said above, it’s not likely that Gilbert ends up with Clemson football but that doesn’t mean the Tigers won’t do their due diligence.
Clemson would love to have a monster option like Gilbert in its arsenal and he’s certainly the top prospect in the NCAA Transfer Portal currently.