Dabo Swinney says Clemson is evaluating Xavier Thomas' health status

The Clemson Tigers didn’t have fifth-year senior Xavier Thomas on Saturday as they fell to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in stunning fashion. After the game, head coach Dabo Swinney shared that the defensive end had a setback in the recovery from his early-season foot injury.

“We’re re-evaluating everything with him,” Swinney said. “He re-injured his foot on Wednesday. Really just heart breaks for him. He was just going full speed, tried to hurdle a guy, and kind of had a setback. So, just re-evaluating his situation and probably know more next week. Maybe I’ll know more tomorrow night.”

Swinney added to his update on Sunday night but had little in the way of a concrete answer. The Tigers skipper said the long-term plan for Thomas is still up in the air.

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After suffering his foot injury in a preseason scrimmage, the defensive line veteran missed the first five games of the year. He finally made his season debut versus Boston College at the beginning of October. He played sparingly, racking up two tackles each versus BC and Florida State.

In 2021, Xavier Thomas had 21 tackles with 3.5 sacks and two forced fumbles as part of the Tigers team that finished the season with three losses.

Swinney reveals Beaux Collins ‘out’ for Week 11

On Sunday, Swinney also revealed that wide receiver Beaux Collins will not play versus Louisville after suffering an injury on Saturday. Versus the Irish, the sophomore pass-catcher had two catches for 18 yards. Through nine games this season, Collins has 20 receptions and five touchdowns with 308 yards. He’s just 99 yards shy of his 2021 total.

Clemson’s 14-game win streak ended with the Week 10 loss to Notre Dame. The Tigers are now No. 12 in the new AP Top 25. They wrap up the season with games versus Louisville, Miami and South Carolina.