Clemson football: Will Shipley epitomizes what Tiger program is all about

By most measuring sticks Will Shipley had a pretty good freshman season with Clemson football, especially given that he was tasked with being one of the replacements for a legend.

Shipley netted 738 yards on 149 carries (5.0) while scoring 11 touchdowns on the ground, hauled in 16 passes for 116 yards and when you include 380 kickoff return yards was far and away the Tigers leader in all purpose yardage.

Shipley is not satisfied though.  Not even close if you heard him speak after Friday’s opening practice.

"“Whether it’s off the field, spiritually, on the field, catching the football, there’s so many different departments that you can improve on every single day.”“…I knew that I had areas to improve so I focused on those daily, did the work, kept my head down and coming out here the best version I’ve been so I’m happy.”"

Shipley readily admitted that he struggled to move on after mistakes in 2021 and that was a focus of his summer, putting the past in the past and moving on.

Shipley has worked on the receiving part of his game this off season and it was obviously a part of his game that he knew needed improvement.

"“I want to coaches to have full trust in me to be out there and throw me the football and not only that, the quarterback, I want D.J. to trust me to go out there and catch the football, whenever it needs to be caught.”"

The drop at Pittsburgh at a crucial time that could have put the Tigers in a position to win the game and perhaps return to the ACC Championship game sticks with Shipley as an example where he fell short, but not only for the reasons you may think.

"“I let my teammates down, not only in dropping that pass, but for the remainder of the game, that’s something that can’t happen, as an athlete athlete I want my teammates to trust me and when my number is called I’ve got to be ready to go regardless of what happened the previous play.”"

Shipley also readily admits that at times the moment was too big for him during his freshman campaign, especially when he first took the field against Georgia.

It was everything you wanted to hear from one of the most important pieces of your team: Accountability, work ethic, appreciation for his him teammates and coaches, knowing HE has to get better.

All that and there was an appreciation for Clemson and the Clemson way tucked in there, too.

"“I’m a football player, but I’m so much more than that as well and that’s one thing that Clemson University does that they allow me to realize my worth outside of this field…”"

He’s only a sophomore, but I’ve always been a Will Shipley fan.  It’s hard not to appreciate his talent, running style and enthusiasm.

He’s talented, engaging, accountable and has a desire to improve the parts of his game that need improvement, refuses to rest on his laurels or shy away from his shortcomings.

There’s sure to be more bumps in the road ahead, but one thing you can bet on is if Will Shipley is the cause of one of those bumps, he’s going to work immediately to fix it and make the ride a little smoother.