Dabo Swinney addresses dismissal of RB Marquise Henderson: 'We have a standard here'

Last month, Clemson surprisingly dismissed true freshman Marquise Henderson. He was preparing to arrive as a four-star recruit, and hoping to play a big role for the Tigers during his college football journey.

While the program wished Henderson “the best as he moves forward,” according to a statement at the time, Dabo Swinney hasn’t commented on the matter — until now. Speaking with the media, the Clemson leader cited the running back not meeting the team’s standard as a reason for his dismissal.

“Just didn’t work out. We have a standard here, and it just didn’t work out,” Swinney stated, via Chapel Fowler of The State Newspaper. “Hate it for him, but wish him well.”

Alas, it’s easy to see why Swinney was disappointed. Henderson played high school football at Anderson (S.C.) Belton-Honea Path, where he was a four-star prospect. He was the No. 161 overall player and No. 11-ranked running back out of the 2025 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

On3’s evaluators were higher on Henderson. He was ranked as the No. 152 overall player and No. 8-ranked running back in the On300 Rankings. It certainly was a nice get for Clemson at the time.

At Belton-Honea Path, Henderson led the program to the 2024 state semifinals and had nearly 8,000 total yards across 47 career games. He had 6,369 career rushing yards at the time he signed with Clemson, averaging 11 yards per rush on 577 career carries.

Additionally, Henderson was the fourth-highest rated player from Clemson’s 2025 recruiting class. The headliner of the group is five-star defensive lineman Amare Adams, who came in as the No. 27 overall player and top-ranked prospect in the state of South Carolina, according to the On3 Industry Ranking.

Regardless, Clemson will be looking to build off an impressive 2024 season, which ended with an ACC title and a College Football Playoff appearance. It was also a breakout year for Cade Klubnik at quarterback, and he’s back for another go-round with the Tigers with hopes of improving his NFL Draft stock.

It all starts Week 1 for Dabo Swinney and company, as they’ll have to be ready to rock right out of the gate. Clemson will face LSU to start their season, and they certainly don’t want to get off on the wrong foot in 2025, like they did last year against Georgia.

— On3’s Nick Schultz contributed to this article.