Clemson's defensive line has a new Terminator.
After transferring from Purdue, defensive end Will Heldt is already turning heads in the Tigers' fall camp. Nicknamed the "robot" by teammate Peter Woods for his relentless preparation, Heldt told reporters in a recent interview that the team's practice intensity is "amped up" from what he was used to.
"I mean, in terms of the day-to-day, to be honest, like football life is football life. Early mornings, late nights," Heldt said. "But in terms of practice, I mean, the intensity is amped up. Just guys are flying around, and obviously the level of competition is a step up."
This is exactly the culture Heldt seems to thrive in. The former Boilermaker jumped at the chance to join his teammates for early-morning workouts.
"I loved it. I was all for it," he said. "That was just something that we did the whole offseason, and then the further along we got, just more and more guys started showing up...just to get their body right, you know, make sure you're fueling yourself and just putting ourselves in the best position possible to go out and perform."
This dedication has earned him the respect of his teammates, including Woods, who said at ACC Kickoff that Heldt prepares like a "robot."
"That's a high compliment coming from a guy like that, obviously. I would say the same thing about him," Heldt said. "He's a complete freak, as you guys know...He's just as hard of a worker off the field. I appreciate that from him."
The new defensive end is excited about the opportunity to play alongside a star-studded defensive front that also features players like Jeremiah Alexander and T.J. Parker.
"It just brings a whole other level of confidence, just stepping up to the line, knowing that we have guys like that that are going to be nightmare fuel for offensive coordinators and offensive lines around the country," Heldt said.
The transfer portal wasn't even on Heldt's mind until he got a call from coach Dabo Swinney. Now fully embraced as a Tiger, Heldt is ready to contribute to a defensive line that's focused on "takeaways, tackling, and effort," according to new defensive coordinator Tom Allen.
Heldt is especially looking forward to the season-opening night game and the electric atmosphere of Death Valley.
"I mean, since we got that slot at night, it's hard to think about much else when you look forward to the season with that being game one," he said. "You can just visualize yourself coming down that hill with 80-whatever-thousand people and, you know, music's blaring. I'm, you know, pumped for that."