Trotter's Confident In Clemson's Plan to Slow Down Tennessee Offense

Tennessee might be without starting quarterback Hendon Hooker, but the Clemson defense is still preparing to face a very explosive Volunteers' offense in the Orange Bowl.

CLEMSON, S.C. — Tennessee might be without starting quarterback Hendon Hooker, but the Clemson defense is still preparing to face a very explosive Volunteers' offense in the Orange Bowl. 

Jeremiah Trotter Jr., who was recently named second-team AP All-American, knows the No. 7 Tigers will have their hands full, despite who starts at quarterback.

"It's gonna be a nice challenge for our defense," Trotter said. "We know from watching film they're a fast-moving offense. So we've been making sure we're passing that in our practice with our scout team to have high tempo in preparation for that."

Joe Milton III will get his second consecutive start in place of the injured Hooker, but according to Trotter, that won't change a whole lot in how the defense goes about preparing for the nation's highest-scoring offense (47.3 points per game).

"I see from watching film they try to give him some easy passes to be able to get him warmed up, but he can still throw the ball down the field," he said. "He's still a very athletic quarterback, dual-threat type guy, and with the high powered offense like this high tempo, we got to be prepared for that. But I feel like our game plan is gonna be right."

One of the biggest keys in defending the high-powered Tennessee offense that comes in averaging 332 passing yards per game will be stamina. Trotter noted that a tired defense is more likely to make costly mistakes.

"Just make sure you're in shape," Trotter said. "You got to make sure you're in shape so you don't get tired. Because when players get tired, they are more prone to making mistakes. But we've been working on that to make sure we're getting our conditioning there in practice and I feel it's gonna pay off on game day."

Clemson will also head to Miami down two defensive starters. Fellow linebacker Trenton Simpson will miss the contest with an injury and defensive end Myles Murphy has opted out, choosing to get a head start on preparations for the NFL Draft. 

While the Tigers will no doubt miss both, Trotter insists that the next-man-up culture that exists inside the program has the team prepared to deal with any and all losses.

"We'll definitely miss guys like them," Trotter said. "I know Myles is a baller, Trenton's a baller, but I mean in the game of football guys got to be ready for their chance and I know that the guys out there, they've been having the right preparation. They're gonna be ready for the opportunity against Tennessee."

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