K.J. Henry Returning to Clemson Defense

K.J. Henry announced Monday that he wants another season with his Tiger teammates despite already having bachelor's and master's degrees.

Ken Ruinard / USA TODAY NETWORK

Clemson defensive end K.J. Henry is coming back for one more season. 

The redshirt junior with bachelor's and master's degrees already in hand announced Monday that he wanted another opportunity to take the field with his teammates. 

"The response and the fight of my guys this past season is what made it even easier to make this decision, because I know EXACTLY who I am coming back to," Henry wrote in his announcement on social media. 

On more trip around the sun ❕❕ pic.twitter.com/As72XdVen1

— KJ Henry (@thekjhenry) January 3, 2022

Henry, a Winston-Salem, N.C., native, finished third on the team in 2021 with 4.5 sacks, including one in the Cheez-It Bowl against Iowa State, and recorded at least half of a sack in Clemson's last four games. His 6.5 tackles for loss ranked fourth on the Tiger defense and he finished the year with 20 total tackles. 

Henry helped the Clemson defense rank second nationally in scoring and eighth in total defense. 

In his four-year career so far, Henry has produced 73 tackles, 19 tackles for a loss and 9.5 sacks. His return gives Clemson some needed experience on defense. The Tigers could lose senior Xavier Thomas to the NFL, although he hasn't made a public decision. 

Clemson already heads into 2022 without several key defensive pieces in veteran linebacker James Skalski and safety Nolan Turner, who are out of eligibility. Cornerback Mario Goodrich already announced he's turning pro, even though he had a COVID-19 eligibility season remaining. And while cornerback Andrew Booth Jr. has yet to make anything official, he's projected to be a first-round selection in the NFL draft. 

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