For a receiver who once felt like the future of Clemson’s passing game, Tyler Brown is spending a lot of time watching it from the sideline.
The sophomore wideout, who burst onto the scene as a true freshman in 2023, has seen his snap count crater over the last month. As Clemson continues to search for a steady offensive rhythm, one of its most electric playmakers has quietly become a bit player.
From Instant Impact to Vanishing Act
The trend isn’t subtle.
Brown opened the 2025 season with a strong workload, logging 231 snaps over Clemson’s first seven games. In the last four, he’s played just 40 snaps total — including a career-low eight against Louisville and seven the week before versus Florida State, outside of games when injuries limited him.
Through 12 weeks, he has 19 catches for 160 yards. For a player who once looked like a future No. 1 option, those are jarring numbers.
Head coach Dabo Swinney insists the staff still believes in him.
“We just got him right where we need him,” Swinney said Tuesday. “He’ll be ready to go if something happens to Antonio. It’s a critical position for us, and that’s just the way snaps have been. We love TB. He’s a great player. But, he can only rep so many places. He’s got a lot of great days ahead. He’s just a sophomore with a couple more years left.”
The message: Brown is more insurance than centerpiece right now — especially behind Antonio Williams in the slot.
Remember the Freshman Who Saved the Room?
It wasn’t long ago that Brown looked like the answer to Clemson’s receiver questions.
In 2023, he arrived as a true freshman and immediately became the Tigers’ most dependable spark in Antonio Williams’ absence. Brown led the team with 52 receptions for 531 yards and four touchdowns, earning Freshman All-American honors and injecting needed juice into the offense.
That momentum stalled in 2024. Brown suffered an ankle injury in the home opener against Appalachian State, tried to gut it out for two more games, then shut it down. Surgery in mid-October and a medical redshirt wiped out the rest of his season.
This fall was supposed to be the comeback — the year he paired that freshman-year polish with a fully healthy body. Instead, it’s been the opposite: fewer snaps, fewer targets and far more questions than answers.
Crowded Room or Misused Weapon?
On paper, Clemson’s receiver room has real talent. Williams is a proven chain-mover. T.J. Moore has emerged as another dangerous option. But with top outside target Bryant Wesco Jr. out for the season, the Tigers can’t exactly claim they’re overflowing with game-breaking depth.
That’s what makes Brown’s usage so puzzling.
Clemson has struggled to find a consistent passing rhythm all year, and limiting one of its most explosive slot options only intensifies scrutiny on offensive coordinator Garrett Riley and the staff’s rotation choices. If Brown really is “right where we need him,” as Swinney says, it’s fair to ask what that says about the Tigers’ broader offensive identity.
Is this simply a case of roles being clearly defined behind Williams? A lingering confidence or health issue that hasn’t been made public? Or a miscalculation in how to deploy a player who once carried the passing game?
For now, most of that remains unclear.
Furman as a Chance to Reset
What is clear: Clemson needs more answers — and Furman could offer one.
With FCS Furman coming to Death Valley this weekend, the Tigers should have an opportunity to build a comfortable margin. If that happens, it could finally be a spot for Brown to log meaningful snaps again and show what he still brings to the offense.
On a roster that once leaned on him as an emergency spark, Brown is now a mystery. A big day against Furman won’t erase the confusion around his role, but it might at least remind everyone — including Clemson’s staff — of what he looked like before the snap count disappeared.
For a Tigers offense still trying to figure out who it is, getting Tyler Brown involved again might be less of a luxury and more of a necessity.