Clemson Football: Xavier Thomas out 4-6 weeks

The ominous sounding tweet from Xavier Thomas on Saturday put a good number of Clemson football fans on edge.

It was relatively short-lived though as later on it became clear that while Thomas was injured and will be out a while, it was not the season ending injury initially feared.

By the time Monday morning rolled around it was clarified that Thomas’ injury will require surgery and this will keep him out four to six weeks.

That timing, if it holds, puts Thomas back around the time of the Wake Forest or North Carolina State games, the first two real tests of the season.

It also further highlights the never ending need for depth, especially along the lines, as Thomas is the second defensive lineman to be injured and require surgery this fall.

The Tigers are still in good shape along the defensive line, especially given their early schedule of Georgia Tech, Furman and Louisiana Tech.

The real threats begin in week 4 against Wake Forest on the road, though there’s a question of whether Sam Hartman will be quarterbacking the Demon Deacons, and North Carolina State in week 5.

Clemson football edge rusher Xavier Thomas’ injury will require surgery and will keep him out 4-6 weeks

Hopefully, both Tre Williams and Thomas will be back for those games and it’s one of the reasons I saw no reason to rush Williams back for Georgia Tech.

It’s a tough break for Thomas who had rededicated himself to football and sculpted his body to be in perhaps his best shape of his life, while looking forward to making a statement towards NFL evaluators.

In short, this is Thomas’ money year and that’s likely at least some of the impetus behind his initial tweet.

Thomas can be a hugely disruptive player off the edge and given his motivation and physical shape this will be a loss for the Tigers despite the depth at the position.

It may not be noticed in games one, two or three, but getting “XT” back for the core conference games is an important piece of the defense for Clemson.