7 freshmen in 2023 that should be starting for Clemson Football in 2024
By John Chancey
Tyler Brown
This one is the proverbial no-brainer. Brown has been a big part of the offense in 2023.
The Tigers seem to be in an unfortunate cycle.
- They lose veteran receivers to injury.
- They need to elevate young, inexperienced players to the starting lineup.
- One of those young guys turns into ‘the man’ that you think will be the best receiver the following season
- That young player gets injured the following season, necessitating other young, inexperienced players to step in, and the cycle begins again.
In 2021, the young guy was Beaux Collins. In 2022, it was Antonio Williams. This season, it has been Tyler Brown.
The Tigers hope that 2024 is the year they can break the cycle. Collin’s return is not guaranteed, but at this point, it does seem more likely he will return than go pro or transfer. If he does return, then the Tigers will have:
- A starting lineup of Collins, Williams, and Brown
- Troy Stellato and Cole Turner off the bench
- Highly-regarded freshmen Bryant Wesco and TJ Moore
Suddenly this wide receiver line-up is in a fairly good spot if they can break the cycle.
As good as Williams was last year and can be when he is healthy, Brown shows the potential to be the best of Cade Klubnik’s targets next season.
He is an example of one of the guys who probably wouldn’t be on this team if some fans had their way and offered this scholarship to a transfer instead of offering it to Brown (a 3-star prospect) late in the recruiting cycle.