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The clear leader in the defensive tackle group stands out on the Clemson football team: junior Peter Woods.

In two seasons with the Tigers, Woods has been really good with 59 tackles, including 11.0 for loss, three sacks and two forced fumbles. The 2023 Freshman All-American played both on the inside and outside last year by necessity, but it will be a good thing for Woods to settle in on the inside this season.

A dominant season from Woods, which is not outside the realm of possibility, can help turn around the Clemson defense in defensive coordinator Tom Allen’s first season with the program.

But Woods has plenty of help. That starts with graduate student Demonte Capehart, who has 59 tackles, including 10.5 for loss, in 45 career games. Getting Capehart back for yet another season was a big offseason development for the team entering the 2025 season. 

Capehart’s experience should help with the growth of the young players on the depth chart. That group includes third-year sophomores Vic Burley and Stephiylan Green and Amare Adams, redshirt freshmen Hevin Brown-Shuler and Champ Thompson and true freshman Amare Adams, one of the top players in the 2025 recruiting class.

Burley has been slowed by injuries, while Green took a big step last year, playing in 12 games after playing in just two games in 2023.

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“Disruptive” is the word the Clemson football website uses to describe T.J. Parker’s first two seasons with the program, and that word is right on the money. Parker has 105 career tackles, including 32.0 for loss, with 16.5 sacks, six forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries in 27 career games (17 starts) from 2023-24.

His six forced fumbles in 2024 set the Clemson record for most forced fumbles in a single season, and his 12.5 tackles for loss in 2023 broke Clemson's true freshman record. And Parker doesn’t seem to be done or satisfied. That’s a good thing for Clemson fans (and the players and coaches) as he enters his junior season. 

But the biggest news at defensive end this year is the addition of Will Heldt, a transfer – yes, a transfer – from Purdue. In 24 games during the 2023 and 2024 seasons, Heldt, now a junior, had 56 tackles, including 10 for loss, five sacks and a fumble recovery that he returned for a touchdown.

Parker and Heldt are the definite starters, but they could have some help with continued growth from senior Cade Denhoff and junior Jahiem Lawson, who both seem to be ready for bigger roles this season. 

And there is more depth behind them with redshirt freshman Darien Mayo and true freshman Ari Watford among others.

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Barrett Carter is no longer with the Clemson program after a standout career, and that will be a hole the Tigers’ coaching staff has to fill. 

But the players are there to do just that. 

Somehow Wade Woodaz is already a senior (boy, that flew by fast), and he has had a strong career. Clemson’s defense will need him to take things up another level and will need him to take over Carter’s leadership role. Woodaz has 140 tackles (21.5 for loss), 8.5 sacks, nine pass breakups, three interceptions, four forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and a blocked punt in his career. Those are tremendous numbers, and we can expect him to continue to add to those numbers in a big way.

Playing next to Woodaz, for the most part, will be sophomore Sammy Brown, who had a solid freshman season with 87 tackles, including 11.5 for loss, and five sacks. But if Brown can jump from solid to terrific, which he should, that can help this defense go to another level.

Jeremiah Alexander, a transfer from Alabama (yes, a transfer … does that joke ever get old?), can be a huge and versatile piece for this defense. Linebackers coach Ben Boulware has praised Alexander’s work ethic, and if that plays out on the field, that gives the Tigers a dynamic trio at the top of the position group. 

Giving them some much-needed depth will be Dee Crayton, Jamal Anderson, Kobe McCloud and Drew Woodaz.

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Clemson cornerbacks coach Mike Reed has done some good work in recent years, recruiting and developing talent, and that has continued with the current group.

Avieon Terrell broke on the scene as a true freshman two years ago with a tremendous season and was solid again last year, although there were some not-so-solid moments. Expect him to bounce back this season. He enters the 2025 season with 82 career tackles, 19 pass breakups, three interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries
Ashton Hampton had a terrific freshman season – remember that pick against Virginia Tech? – and is poised to have a big sophomore season. He had 30 tackles, six pass breakups and two interceptions last season.

And Jeadyn Lukus had a strong junior season after some problems with injuries during his first two seasons. Lukus played 14 games last year after playing just seven in 2023 and has 49 tackles, 11 pass breakups and two interceptions in his career.

That makes for a terrific trio at the top and a group that could (and should) do some special things this season for the Tigers. That’s especially true if Clemson’s defensive front and linebackers can put some pressure on the opposing quarterbacks. 

And they should have plenty of help from sophomore Branden Strozier and redshirt freshman Corian Gipson.

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