Clemson football: Consistent Xavier Thomas will strike fear into opponents

Consistent Xavier Thomas will strike fear into Clemson football opponents

A consistent Xavier Thomas is something that opponents during the 2021 Clemson football season absolutely don’t want to see.

Thomas was rated as the No. 1 DE in the nation back in 2018 when he signed with the Clemson football program and many believed he had the ability to become a top-10 pick in a future NFL Draft, but so far that hasn’t exactly panned out.

Thomas has shown flashes of greatness and the potential that we all fell in love with. There have also been times where he has struggled to get on the field and to make plays when he was on the field.

Thomas put on a little more weight than he should have following that freshman season and played just sparingly his sophomore year as he dealt with injuries. This previous season, Thomas struggled with effects from COVID-19 and strep throat that left him unable to play for the first portion of the season.

Even when he did get back into decent football shape, he only appeared sparingly and the season was over before he could find his stride.

"“He was consistently inconsistent last year. For all kind of reasons,” Dabo Swinney said via The Clemson Insider. “The biggest thing was just probably his availability.”"

Now, as Clemson goes through spring workouts, we’re hearing a certain word tied to Thomas that absolutely should strike fear into Tiger opponents: Consistent.

"“He has been here every day. He has been very consistent,” Swinney said. “That is all we need. I am excited for him to hopefully finish up strong and really be able to have the type of off-season that he needs to have and wants to have. If he does that, then that is going to be good news for Clemson.”"

It will be very good news for Clemson football

If Thomas is able to have a full offseason in which he puts in the work and gets into the playing shape he needs to be at, and if he shows that consistency that has been lacking, we could be talking about an All-American this coming season.

He is that good.

Thomas is going to have to earn his playing time, but it seems there is a confidence that wasn’t there before.

If he is able to achieve that full potential, Clemson fans are going to absolutely be pleased with the Tigers’ edge-rushing production.

We’ve maintained that Thomas could leave Clemson football as one of the ‘greats’ and that’s still on the table if he has an elite season this fall. It all starts in the spring and so far, so good.