Will Taylor’s MLB Draft decision is good news for Clemson’s QB room. What’s next?
.JPG "After opting to stay at Clemson, Dutch Fork alum Will Taylor is likely to be the Tigers’ backup quarterback behind D.J. Uiagalelei to help with depth at the position.")
By the end of spring football in April, Clemson was down to two healthy quarterbacks: D.J. Uiagalelei, who will be the starting signal caller in the fall, and walk-on redshirt sophomore Hunter Helms.
It’s not unfamiliar territory for the Tigers, as head coach Dabo Swinney recalled.
In 2018, then-freshman Trevor Lawrence was out with concussion-like symptoms. Kelly Bryant, the starting quarterback in 2017, and Hunter Johnson had transferred to Missouri and Northwestern, respectively. That left Chase Brice at QB and caused wide receiver Hunter Renfrow to join the quarterback room to provide depth at the position.
Three years later, the chances of the Tigers facing a similar situation are not out of the question. Backup QB Taisun Phommachanh tore his Achilles in the spring game April 3.
“Unfortunately, it’s not our first rodeo. ... We’re fortunate to have the guys that we have,” Swinney said this spring. “Obviously, we only had three guys out there this spring and we’re super excited about adding those other three guys this summer.”
The Tigers signed two quarterbacks for the Class of 2021 in Will Taylor and Bubba Chandler and brought in walk-on freshman Billy Wiles.
“We’ll have five guys here and we’ll evaluate ... all summer long to see what we’ve got to do to give ourselves the best chance to be successful,” Swinney said. “Hopefully these guys will come in here ready to go to work.”
One damper in those plans: the MLB Draft. “Five guys” became four.
Chandler was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the third round Monday. His social media and reports from several outlets indicate he’ll leave school and go pro.
Meanwhile, Taylor was a projected first-round prospect, but he wasn’t selected after the first two days of the draft. No matter. The Tigers quarterback/wide receiver had already made his mind up that he’d stay in school after reporting to campus on June 24.
That puts the Tigers in a better position than if both Chandler and Taylor had left for pro baseball, but it still leaves the quarterback depth a little shallow behind starter Uiagalelei.
Current Clemson quarterbacks
Uiagalelei showed his ability to step up last season when Lawrence was out after testing positive for COVID-19.
The Inland Empire, California native totaled 781 yards and 59 completed passes without an interception in his first two collegiate starts against Boston College and Notre Dame. By the end of his freshman season, where he played in 10 total games, he became only the second FBS player since 2000 — after Georgia Southern’s Shai Werts (2018) — to throw at least 115 passes and record at least five passing touchdowns without an interception.
There’s no doubt Uiagalelei, who is already projected to be the top NFL Draft pick in 2023, can handle the pressure.
Taylor, as the only other healthy scholarship signal caller, could ascend to the backup role with a strong summer and preseason. He’s expected to convert to wide receiver at some point in his career. Given the Tigers’ depth issues, it likely won’t happen this year.
Taylor’s ability is undeniable after the Dutch Fork alum led the squad to a fifth straight Class 5A football championship last fall. He ended the season with 2,237 yards and 21 touchdowns while rushing for 448 yards and 11 scores.
So far this summer during the Tigers’ player-run practices, Taylor has reportedly taken reps at both quarterback and slot receiver.
When it comes to the third-string QB, experience would suggest Helms could be the guy — if he doesn’t lock down the backup role. The redshirt sophomore played in three games last season, going 9 for 12 with 77 yards and two touchdowns. He also completed 11 of 16 passes for 88 yards, playing on both the white and orange teams during Clemson’s spring football game.
“I thought he did some good things today,” Swinney said of Helms following the contest. “He’s done some good things this spring. He’s still a developing guy.”
Incoming freshman Wiles could challenge, though, after turning down several scholarship offers to walk on at Clemson. He ended his prep career by helping Stone Bridge High win its second-ever Virginia high school football Class 5 state championship in May, ending a 9-0 season with 1,357 passing yards and 15 touchdowns.
Mickey Thompson, Wiles’ football coach at Stone Bridge, believes his former QB will have no problem adjusting at the next level and will be ready whenever called.
“He stepped into the (starting) role as a sophomore when he came to varsity and he was telling seniors what to do and where to line up,” Thompson recalled. ‘He’s not going to have any problems with that part of it. He believes he can do it. He carries himself very well. That’s not going to be an issue.”
In case of emergency
While Uiagalelei, Taylor, Helms and Wiles will be the quarterbacks the Tigers have on paper in the fall, there are others who, like Renfrow, could be converted to play at the spot.
Redshirt senior linebacker Baylon Spector, sophomore safety Tyler Venables, redshirt freshman tight end Sage Ennis, sixth-year senior punter Will Spiers, senior tight end Braden Galloway and redshirt sophomore punter/placekicker Aidan Swanson all played under center at some point in high school.
Spector won a state championship at Calhoun (Georgia) when he was only a sophomore quarterback, and Venables left Daniel High School as the program’s all-time career passing yardage ladder with 6,927. Given what both mean to the Tigers’ defense, though, it’s not likely either will make the move to the other side of the ball. Spector was Clemson’s leading tackler last year, while Venables is already adding depth to the young, improving secondary.
When it comes to bringing in a transfer, Swinney’s feelings on the matter have been well-noted. He did leave the door just slightly open for that possibility, though, during a news conference March 26.
“No,” he responded emphatically when asked if Clemson would seek a transfer to compete for the backup quarterback position, then followed with, “unless somebody left. If somebody left, we’d, you know, you can’t go recruit a high school kid in May, so if somebody backed up and left on us, we’d have no choice, but we believe in Taisun Phommachanh. ... He was the third guy last year, but he’s a critical piece to what we’re trying to do and we’re excited about his development.”
Much has changed in the nearly four months since Swinney’s statement, including Phommachanh’s availability. According to the UT Southwestern Medical Center’s website, an Achilles tear can take a year or longer to fully heal with rehab. Medline Plus, which pulls information from the National Library of Medicine, allotted a time period of four to six months, with physical therapy, before most people can return to normal activity.
Should it come to going to the transfer portal for the first time ever, the Tigers’ mentor will have plenty of quarterbacks from which to choose.
According to 247Sports, quarterbacks who are currently in the transfer portal and previously took snaps at a Power Five Conference school include: Matt Valecce (Boston College), Allan Walters (Mississippi State), Connor Adair (Memphis), Markevion Quinn (Memphis), redshirt sophomore Spencer Brasch (Cal), grad transfer Devon Modster (Cal) and Grant Tisdale, who also saw time at wide receiver while at Ole Miss.
What’s next
Both Chandler and Taylor have made their decisions. Chandler will join the Pirates’ organization, and Taylor is staying to most likely be Uiagalelei’s backup. As the now sophomore starter can attest, it’s not a bad gig to have at Clemson.
The Tigers are expected to have another strong season. Given their track record of high-scoring contests and blowouts, there’s an opportunity for playing time late.
The unpredictability of the game is also a factor between injuries and other issues that may come up. Having that depth at one of the most important positions on the field will be crucial for the Tigers. Even though they won’t have both Chandler and Taylor, Swinney and his staff breathe a little easier having at least one of them.
The rest is still unwritten.
This story was originally published July 13, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Will Taylor’s MLB Draft decision is good news for Clemson’s QB room. What’s next?."
