Clemson safety Sherrod Covil out for season with torn ACL
Clemson safety Sherrod Covil is out for the season after suffering a torn ACL earlier this week in practice, Dabo Swinney announced following Saturday’s win over Notre Dame.
Covil was set to start in the game with Jalyn Phillips out, but instead, he suffered a serious injury on Thursday.
With Sherrod Covil out, redshirt freshman Kylon Griffin moved into a much bigger role and played well, including coming up with a huge interception in the fourth quarter.
More Clemson injury updates
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney provided an update on several other players following Saturday’s win over Notre Dame.
Offensive lineman Marcus Tate is likely out for the season, Swinney said. Tate could return for a bowl game, but that is not guaranteed. Swinney did not specify what exactly Tate is dealing with. Starting receiver Antonio Williams is still a couple of weeks away from being ready to play, according to Swinney.
He added that Tigers starting running back Will Shipley, starting cornerback Sheridan Jones, starting safety Jalyn Phillips and starting defensive end Justin Mascoll are all day-to-day.
Dabo Swinney: ‘If Clemson’s a stock, you better buy all you freaking can’ after Notre Dame win
Despite being banged up, Clemson still found a way to beat Notre Dame on Saturday. Dabo Swinney was fired up after the win.
Here was an electric Dabo Swinney just after the game as Clemson fans met him at the paw.
“We ain’t had much go our way this year, but the one thing that has shown up every week is the heart and the fight of Clemson. And I know we’re down and everybody’s throwing dirt on us, but if Clemson’s a stock, you better buy all you freaking can buy right now. Let’s go!”
You can also watch his postgame statement right here:
As part of that postgame interview, Swinney also credited his defense for stringing together important stops all day, especially in the second half, and obviously in the final stand after the Tigers had fumbled the ball back to Notre Dame late in the fourth quarter.
“Well, it’s awesome. They were awesome all day. I think they had like four or five punts in a row. It was a great finish. It’s kind of been that type of year, and with this today, we made one more play. I’m just really proud of the fight from the guys and really happy for our players.”
He was then asked about the offensive line, which was missing several starters. Swinney specifically noted that freshman Harris Sewell and junior Trent Howard stepped in and came up huge for a Tiger OL unit that desperately needed some next men up to perform well today.
“They battled their asses off today,” he added.