Clemson Football: Five offensive players who could have breakout seasons

Jake Briningstool

It’s been an offseason theme since 2017: will the tight ends play a major role in the offense?

Clemson had a strong run of pass-catching tight ends during Coach Swinney’s early tenure: Dwayne Allen, Brandon Ford, Jordan Leggett. Since Leggett’s departure for the NFL, there hasn’t been a single individual who has been able to fill his shoes.

There has been a tight end by committee approach with players like Milan Richard, Braden Galloway and this season’s likely starter, Davis Allen. Galloway showed early flashes of talent that never developed. Allen was a reliable guy that the offense turned to on multiple occasions in 2021.

We should not sell Allen short; he has played well and deserves to start. It is difficult, however, to not get excited about the potential of sophomore Jake Briningstool, who was the overall #1 tight end in the 2021 recruiting cycle. Of all his peers, Briningstool is the one who has shown the most potential to be a difference maker for the offense.

Classically, most people think a tight end needs to have size like Allen (253 lbs) to be effective as a blocker. Briningstool weighed in at 227 lbs this fall, and that does sound a bit light for a blocking tight end, but we shouldn’t assume that weight and strength are always the same thing. We will have to wait and see if Briningstool is a liability in blocking, but if he can handle it, he appears to have a lot of potential to make a difference as a pass catcher.