Justyn Ross Injury – Impact on Clemson & the CFB Playoff

Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney announced on Monday that star WR Justyn Ross (#6 WR in our rankings) would be lost for the season due to a newly discovered neck injury.  The injury is potentially career threatening and a solemn reminder that life comes before football.  The most important thing is that Ross get healthy and be able to put this injury in the past. With that being said, this article will analyze the impact this devastating injury will have on Clemson’s College Football Playoff hopes.

Impact on Clemson

The Tigers return an all-world backfield duo in QB Trevor Lawrence (#1 QB) and RB Travis Etienne (#2 RB).  Those two are more than enough to carry the team for the majority of the schedule.  Nevertheless, the loss of a big time proven WR like Ross cannot be minimized.  Ross was ranked as our #6 returning WR and is a big time talent through and through.  He had more than 1,000 receiving yards as a freshman including back to back monster efforts in the 2018 College Football Playoff (12 catches, 301 yards, 3 TDs).  Ross backed that campaign up with over 800 receiving yards and a less impressive yet solid performance in the 2019 Playoff totaling 11 catches, 121 yards, 0 TD).  Ross was dealing with injuries throughout the 2019 playoff and clearly was not himself.

Clemson has recruited big time talent at the receiver position in Frank Ladson, Joseph Ngata, and EJ Williams.  That trio was ranked as top 70 national recruits in their respective classes.  Ngata and Ladson showed promise as freshman in limited playing time and should be ready for a larger role.  Williams will be a freshman this year but will have an opportunity to show he can make an impact (much like Ross did his freshman season).  When replacing a big time player you tend to look for players with that kind of upside and these three players fit that description.

There is other receiving talent on the roster starting with senior Amari Rodgers.  Rodgers is now the team’s leading returning receiver and has plenty of experience.  He will be counted on to be a steadying presence at the position while the younger talents settle in to larger roles.  Players like Brannon Spector, Cornell Powell, and Ajou Ajou should not be automatically discounted.  Each of them has the talent to be a productive piece of the Clemson offense this season.

The void at the position is noticeable and will not be easily overcome this season.  It’s never easy to replace a true star player with a proven track record. Players like Ross make everyone else’s job easier with the attention they get from the opposing defense. It is likely this year’s WR room will rely on multiple targets as opposed to having the one or two go-to receivers the offense has grown accustomed to in the past. 

Impact on the CFB Playoff

Clemson is far and away the best team in the ACC.  There’s no debating the recent domination the Tigers have had, but that did not prevent an inferior North Carolina team from taking the Tigers to the wire this past season.  The Tigers play every game with a target on their back, taking the opponents best shot week in and week out. Crazy things happen every college football season and losing a player like Ross could be the difference in a similar situation this season.

Clemson will have a difficult matchup at Notre Dame in the month of November.  The Irish have been picked by some pundits as dark horse playoff candidates and should provide the first major test for Clemson.  In a big game like that one or two players can be the difference between a win and a loss. The Ross injury makes it imperative that the other key playmakers remain healthy for big games like this one. Right now the Tigers probably have enough talent to pull that game out but there is a lot that can happen between now and November.

Whether or not one of the younger talents can develop into a star receiver will make all the difference when CFB Playoff comes around.  That is when the opposing secondary will be talented and the Tigers will need a receiver to step up and make a play.  The Tigers have spent the season tuning up for the playoff the past few seasons, it will be critical for them to find guys to make those plays before the playoff comes around in 2020. Whether or not those plays are made will ultimately determine how far Clemson can go this season.   

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IMG_8944 image take by Parker Anderson is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.