Season Opener A Successful First Step For Clemson's Myles Murphy

Clemson defensive end Myles Murphy had quite the successful collegiate debut on Saturday night against Wake Forest. While happy with his progress up to this point, the freshman knows he still has more to learn

Myles Murphy's debut on a college football field was everything he hoped it would be. 

After leading the No. 1 Clemson Tigers in both total tackles and sacks in the 37-13 win over Wake Forest, Murphy said once that initial rush of adrenaline had subsided and that first contact was made, it was just football. 

"It was special honestly," Murphy said. "The first drive out there I was actually very nervous, but as usual, as soon as you make the first contact on the field, all that anxiousness and jitteriness, it kind of gets out of your body. After that, I was telling myself it's just football, same sport I've been playing for years. The rest of the game just really felt like high school ball and I was just really doing what I do on the field."

What the true freshman does on the football field is cause disruption. The first-year player recorded two sacks against Wake Forest over the weekend and was consistently penetrating the line of scrimmage when he was on the field.

However, despite the success Murphy had in the opener, he knows he still has more to learn when it comes to mastering defensive coordinator Brent Venables' complex system. He is pleased with his progress up to this point and knows that Saturday night was just the first step in a long journey. 

"I feel like I'm coming along pretty well with the playbook," Murphy said. "It honestly feels like he (Venables) just keeps adding on to the plays, but that's just the defensive coordinator he is. That's what makes our defense so good, and all I can do is just keep learning the system."

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