5 Things I am watching in the Clemson Football Spring Game

The Offensive Line

It’s tough for fans to really analyze what is happening on an offensive line. We can often see the collective result, but diagnosing where something went wrong is tougher. We don’t always know who was responsible for each defender. Sometimes linemen are supposed to release a defender free to block someone downfield.

It can be even harder to get a good feeling about the state of the offensive line in a spring game. So much of what they do is about the full unit on the field.

Traditionally, they are broken up into two different sides equally. If that approach is taken again, then we will see generally how individuals fare against their counterparts on the defensive side, but it will be hard to gauge how the best five will play together come fall.

Last season, Swinney elected to keep all the starters together on one squad and put the second string on the other squad. This allowed the starting offensive line to play together.

Swinney said this was a one-time thing, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it happens again this year. Then again, the staff’s strategy might be more about individuals. They might separate the teams so they can have this individual on the offensive line taking on this individual on the defensive line. If they have a decent feel for where they stand but they want to see how a few younger players respond against the best competition they can throw at them, then this would be the direction to go.

Next: Sammy Brown and Bryant Wesco