One of the Clemson Tigers’ duller position groups so far this season has been the interior defensive line. That should change in the near future with a key player coming back from injury.
Back at the beginning of the year, the Tigers’ defensive tackle transfer Kourtney Kelly tore his ACL, missing the remainder of the spring and the start of the 2026 season. After head coach Dabo Swinney hinted at it over the course of the last several weeks, the expectation is for Kelly to play against Charleston Southern this weekend.
Swinney thinks it will give that group a much-needed boost for the remainder of the season.
“We kind of ramped him up last week,” he said. “He’s been getting competitive work, and so that’s got a chance to be a good shot in the arm for us down the stretch.”
Junior lineman Champ Thompson was a guy who worked with Kelly over the first few months that he was still practicing with the team before his injury. Even now, as the West Georgia transfer has worked his way back into practices, he’s impressed with the type of work ethic he’s had to show to come back in 2026.
That will only help the Tigers with adding another piece, but one that is expected to be a starter when fully healthy.
“It’s awesome,” Thompson said. “It was awesome to see him put in the work and be able to try to get back as fast as he could.”
Kelly, a junior, was the Tigers’ first transfer that they picked up during the 2026 cycle. Being a three-star transfer recruit coming out of West Georgia, it’s not hard to see why Swinney jumped on bringing him to Clemson for at least his next two seasons.
The Columbus, Georgia, native finished with 17 tackles, four sacks and a fumble recovery in 12 games with the Wolves, redshirting in 2024. Over the course of the first several weeks, when he was healthy, many saw him as the standout transfer from Clemson’s 2026 offseason class.
Now, in the Tigers’ sixth game of the season, fans should see snaps from the defensive tackle against Charleston Southern this weekend.
“I feel like he would definitely have an impact and can definitely help our defense out in that area,” Thompson said.
“He’s doing really good,” Swinney added. “We expect him to play.”
Kickoff from Memorial Stadium is set for noon, with the game to be broadcast on the ACC Network.
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