Andy Burburija may have only just gotten to Clemson, but he is already making his presence felt. The junior college transfer out of Iowa Western has been a brute force in the trenches for the Tigers along the defensive line. With Will Vandervort of The Clemson Insider describing him as "unblockable at times", Burburija may be the disruptor this team needs at the line of scrimmage to get back on top.
Although he appears to be behind veteran Vic Burley on the defensive line depth chart, it is not like Burley has done anything to keep Burburija off his trail. Injury concerns have popped up again for the junior defensive tackle out of Warner Robins, Ga. Defensive coordinator Tom Allen will want to implement a defensive line rotation, but Burburija's position coach Nick Eason has to be impressed.
Eason may not go as far as to say Burburija will start on the road at LSU, but he is definitely going to be a highly impactful player up front for Clemson moving forward. Frankly, the team needed this. Whenever Clemson has been a high-end football team under Dabo Swinney, they have been a menace along the defensive line. In recent years, that seems to have gotten away from them a bit.
Clemson still has work to do defensively, but Burburija's fast emergence out of junior college is huge.
Andy Burburija may be more than merely Vic Burley depth in the trenches
The biggest downside to not using the transfer portal has everything to do with depth. Clemson continues to recruit well out of high school, but Swinney's reluctance of dipping into the portal has hurt this team in more ways than one. On the surface, Clemson has not brought in the stars to help the team win right away. On a deeper level, every injury is magnified because of the lack of depth.
Whether it be Burley sidelined with a day-to-day issue during fall camp, or true freshman defensive back Polo Anderson seeing his year end by way of a torn ACL, it all matters for a team hoping to rebound like Clemson. In a way, Burburija coming over to Clemson by way of junior college may be more than just a depth piece. He has made a positive impact in fall, and may do so vs. LSU here soon.
For Clemson to achieve all it can this year, it needs to establish leads and hold onto them. Clemson may be the kings of the ACC comeback, but the Tigers have a bad reputation of squandering leads of late. To counterbalance that, you need a team that can run the football with conviction, as well as get after the passer with little ease. Burburija will never carry the rock, but he can blow up the opposition.
At this time, Clemson is looking for both leaders and productive players on the field. While everyone can lead in their own way, it may serve Burburija to wreak havoc along the defensive line like he and his new teammates know he can. Of course, Burley will need to carry his weight as the marquee player of this unit. However, Burburija could learn more from fellow transfer Will Heldt than anything.
It doesn't matter where you start, but how you finish. Burburija should know this after taking the gigantic leap up in competition to Clemson from the JUCO level. His new team is counting on him.
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