Over the course of the past five or six seasons, the Clemson Football program has had a growing reputation of producing NFL caliber wide receivers. This is measured by the high potency of new wide receivers and their talent here at Clemson.
This new guard, which includes Mike Williams, Deon Cain, Artavis Scott and Hunter Renfrow touts one of the most dangerous wide receiver corps in the college football nation. This was clearly seen in the team’s National Championship win over Alabama.
However, this idea of Clemson just now becoming “WRU” ignores the history of reloading over rebuilding here at Clemson.
Over the past six seasons the Clemson football program has had a constant stable of talented wide outs. The first wave of these were the likes of Jacoby Ford, Aaron Kelly and Tyler Grisham. They went out on Saturdays at Clemson and attempted to emulate the great wide outs from past great teams Clemson has fielded, such as Perry Tuttle.
The second wave, which really established the brand of “WRU,” was the field of Sammy Watkins, Deandre Hopkins, Adam Humphries, Martavis Bryant, Jon Brown and Jaron Brown. This massive group of wide outs, which includes several NFL stars such as Watkins and Hopkins, really began to cement Clemson’s legacy as a wide receiver powerhouse.
After such a large second wave, it would seem very improbable for a continued third wave of success.
This however is just what happened with the emergence of Mike Williams, Deon Cain, Artavis Scott and Hunter Renfrow. This third wave of “WRU” culminated with huge performances in the National Championship game by all three wide outs, including the now legendary game-winning touchdown catch by Hunter Renfrow.
After the success of this third wave, there is little to question of Clemson University being in reality “WRU.” The next question in this reputation is whether the program can continue with a fourth wave with Mike Williams and Artavis Scott heading off to their careers in the NFL.
If the recruiting is any indication, then the fourth wave will be ready this upcoming season. With starters Deon Cain and Hunter Renfrow returning, and backups such as Diondre Overton or Ray Ray McCloud now having the opportunity to shine, Clemson’s “WRU” brand should be right on track. Adding to that, next year with the addition of Tee Higgins and Amari Rodgers, both of which are top rated wide outs in their recruiting class, will only bolster the Tigers’ already dominant wide receiver history.
With this continued tradition of year after year and wave after wave of top notch, NFL-caliber wide receivers coming through the Clemson football program, it is no question Clemson has truly established “WRU.”