Putnam moves to center, Tigers will Actively Pursue Somebody in Transfer Portal
CLEMSON, S.C. — Dabo Swinney has been pretty up front on how he wishes to use the transfer portal. He does not want to actively recruit from it, choosing to instead stay with recruiting student-athletes out of high school.
The only way Swinney says he would use the portal is if Clemson ever came into a dire situation. Well, that time is now.
The Tigers’ head coach confirmed on Wednesday they will be without center Mason Trotter for the majority of the 2022 season for an undisclosed reason. Add in the fact Hunter Rayburn, who also started at center in 2021, has medically retired from football, Clemson finds itself in a dire situation at the center position.
“We’re gonna actively pursue somebody in the portal between now and May,” Swinney said.
However, Swinney said the Tigers are not going to bring in just anybody. This is not about just filling a roster spot, but about finding someone who can come in and help the team right away.
“Specifically, it’s got to be the right fit,” he said. “Somebody that fits us. Fits our program. Fits our locker room. And not just a guy, somebody that’s all conference, multi-year starter type of guy. Somebody that’s a veteran, you know, because there’s a little bit of a gap.”
Because there is a gap, the Tigers are moving right guard Will Putnam to center with redshirt freshman Ryan Linthicum working behind him, along with redshirt sophomore Trent Howard.
Putnam, who has reclassified, will be a junior this coming season.
“I think that is the right move for him. It is the right move for our team,” Swinney said. “We will see how that goes, but he has been working really hard at that.”
Swinney is hopeful moving a guy with Putnam’s experience will make a big difference for them at center. Outside of left tackle Jordan McFadden, Putnam is the most experienced lineman on the roster. He has played in 33 career games, thus far, including 22 starts, which have come in each of the last two years.
“Hopefully, that is going to be a move that is going to make a huge difference for us,” Swinney said. “It will take a little pressure off Trent and Ryan and let them continue to come. We will cross train a bunch of guys in there.
“Mitchell Mays will play a lot of guard. We feel like Dietrick [Pennington] had a chance to compete and be a starter for us (at guard) last year. So, getting him back is a big shot. Getting John Williams back, you know, everybody kinda of forgot about him. He has been gone. That is a big ole grown man there that is coming off an injury, but he is full go. So, we will see where he is.”
Despite losing Rayburn and Trotter, Swinney feels good about the offensive line, overall. As usual, they will cross train a lot of guys at different positions over the course of the spring. He even indicated McFadden, one of the few guys who can snap the ball on the team, will also get some work at center over the course of the remaining 14 practices this spring.
“We will have a lot of options. But, again, if there is a guy out there that fits us, brings all the attributes that we are looking for, then that is something we will consider at some point,” Swinney said.
