Dabo Swinney’s quest for offensive line depth didn’t take him to the Transfer Portal — it took him to the track.
As Clemson prepares for spring practice this week, the focus turns to Carlito Jones, a giant 6-foot-8, 270-pound redshirt junior who is making the jump from throwing circles to the offensive line. A Pendleton High in Anderson native, Jones has served the past two years as a juggernaut for Clemson track and field. Now he's ready to see whether his ability to launch heavy metal can translate his talent into moving the defensive tackles on ACC teams.
Jones was not so much a track player as an elite athlete. His résumé is marked by a second-place score with the weight throw at the 2024 Clemson Invitational and by a personal best 53.82-meter hammer throw at the 2024 ACC Outdoor Championships. Those “thrower traits” like explosive hip power, lateral balance and violent hand-fighting in an offensive line play is a goldmine. Jones comes on to the football team as a walk-on, but his frame and athletic profile indicate he is more than a body for the practice team.
Jones' timing could not have been better. Clemson’s offensive line room is now a construction zone, in a mass exodus after the 2024 season. The Tigers lost four veteran starters — Blake Miller, Tristan Leigh, Ryan Linthicum, and Walker Parks — and had reserve Rowan Byrne sprint for North Carolina via portal. Swinney, in keeping with his nature, bypassed the portal’s easy escape routes and instead went for a youth program.
Jones will offer a veteran, homegrown presence, joined by a gigantic six-person freshman class comprised of:
Chancellor Barclay (4-star, No. 8 OL recruit).
Grant Wise (4-star, No. 15 OL recruit).
Carter Scruggs (4-star, No. 18 OL recruit).
At 6-foot-8, Jones quickly rises to become one of the most physically imposing on the offense. Only redshirt junior Dominic Cardone (6-foot-9) has taller stature. For a sophomore, when freshman Braden Wilmes signs up at that same height heading into the fall, the Tigers will now have a unique "Twin Towers" approach to tackling that could greatly help new quarterback Chris Vizzina with the prospect of a new life in the lineup.
Transitioning from the track to the trenches is a steep one, and Jones has two years of eligibility to show that "throwing mass" is precisely what this new-look Clemson offense needs. His footwork, if, in a matter of weeks, he’ll be no worse than the hammer master, he could take the walk-on tale and make it a staple on a Saturday.