Clemson football: 5 position battles to watch in fall camp 2021

The Clemson football team will take to the practice field for the first time Friday afternoon as they begin to prepare for the upcoming 2021 season.

The Tigers will open up against the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday, Sept. 4 but there is a ton of work to get in before then.

With new faces, players stepping into leadership roles and an added layer of motivation following the results of the CFB Playoff semifinals this past January, there are plenty of things to watch in fall camp this month.

Here’s a look at five position battles that we’ll be watching closely during preseason camp.

Five position battles to watch in Clemson football fall camp

5. Defensive End

Clemson has five defensive ends on the roster who have started games at some point or another during their career.

Myles Murphy, Xavier Thomas, K.J. Henry, Justin Foster and Justin Mascoll are all now well-experienced veterans who have been in the system and know what is expected of them at the position.

At this point, it would seem like a foregone conclusion to assume that Murphy would start at one of the defensive end spots, but what about on the other side?

Thomas is reportedly back at his ideal weight and has been working hard this summer. Henry should be recovered. Foster and Mascoll have both been in the system for years and people forget that Foster was actually the listed starter heading into 2020 before his battle with COVID.

So, who ends up at the other starting position and what does the rotation look like? That’s something we’re going to be keeping an eye on throughout the preseason.

In addition to those five mentioned, we should also note that Clemson has Greg Williams and Regan Upshaw returning as well as two 4-star freshmen in Zaire Patterson and Cade Denhoff to add depth at the position.