Meet And Greet<\/h3>\n
The 2017 defensive line is led by tackles Christian Wilkins<\/a><\/strong> and Dexter Lawrence<\/a><\/strong>. Wilkins is versatile enough to play inside a tackle and on the edge if needed. He had 13 tackle for loss and 3.5 sacks a season ago, and has three sacks already in 2017.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=rEsswczmQzk<\/a><\/p>\n Lawrence is a monster of a man, at 6\u20195\u201d and 340 pounds he is a wall in the middle of the line. Junior Austin Bryant<\/a><\/strong> is the sack master of the group at defensive end. He has five sacks already in this young season. Sophomore Clelin Ferrell<\/a><\/strong> had six sacks as a freshman, but has only brought the quarterback down once so far this season. Defensive tackle Albert Huggins<\/a><\/strong> is the main producer off the bench for the Tigers.<\/p>\n Clemson has made a living in opponents backfields over the past few seasons. Of course their offensive prowess with Deshaun Watson<\/strong><\/a> has gotten the most of the recognition. It is their ability to dominant in the trenches has allowed them to move from a good to great football team. The Tigers lead all of college football in tackles for a loss over the last four seasons. Stopping plays before they reach the line of scrimmage can paralyze opposing offenses. The Tigers had 11 sacks in a win over Auburn. They also provided constant harassment of reigning Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson<\/a><\/strong> in a beat down of the Louisville Cardinals.<\/p>\n Defensive coordinator Brent Venables<\/strong>\u2019 defense is predicated on putting offenses under constant pressure. When you can put opponents behind the chains on early downs, it hampers their ability to pick up first downs and sustain drives. The added pressure of blitzing is a good tool. However, if you have a defensive line that can create disruption on its own, it bolsters the entire defense. When you have a player like Wilkins that can play multiple spots along the line, formulating a plan to stop block them becomes even harder.<\/p>\n Clemson currently ranks third in the country in yards and points allowed per game. Along with the Michigan Wolverines, they are the only Power Five schools to rank in the top twelve nationally in both passing and rushing yards allowed per contest. It all starts in the trenches for the Tigers. They force negative plays in the run game and by sacking the quarterback. Being able to do this with only the four defensive linemen means more players can help in coverage on the back end.<\/p>\n There have been a lot of great defensive lineman fight in the trenches for Clemson over the years. This current group is hoping led this team back to the College Football Playoff. They can possibly go down as one of the best defensive lines in program history.<\/p>\nIn Your Backfield<\/h3>\n
Defensive Foundation<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/lwosoncfb.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2017\/09\/849296312.jpg\")
<\/a>