Clemson basketball star Ian Schieffeline’s name has made waves within the Clemson community recently, but not for the reason you think.
Starting in the 2025-26 season, Sheeffeelin will make his Clemson football debut, donning the orange and purple once again… but this time as a tight end, through a surprise fifth year that will give the Tiger another year of eligibility.
At the end of last month, the Clemson men’s basketball team suffered a disheartening season-ending loss to the McNeese State Cowboys in the opening round of March Madness.
While the loss was especially upsetting for the Clemson fanbase — whose expectations were undoubtedly inflated after watching the Tigers’ unprecedented appearance in the Elite Eight in 2024, followed by their impressive 27-7 (18-2 ACC) record this year — there is likely not a single person more crushed by the season’s abrupt end than a senior who will never take the court as a Tiger again.
For Schieffelino, the pain of this final loss was enough for a drastic change. So he did what anyone else would do in his position: he gave Dabo Swinney a call.
As many Clemson fans will recall, the head coach spoke very highly of Cheffelin during a press conference in October of last year, particularly regarding his potential as a football player.
“He’d be an unbelievable left tackle, but he wouldn’t want to play that,” Swinney said. “He’d want to be in one of those sexy positions.”
Schieffellen echoed the sentiment.
“I could play some tight end,” he said at the ACC Tipoff last fall. “I have some pretty good hands, so I think I’d be alright.”
Believe it or not, the Loganville, Georgia, native’s debut against the state of Louisiana will not be his first time on the field, as he shone at quarterback and tight end in middle school.
He reckons his success as a quarterback was not a result of his reads — as he “didn’t make many” at all — but said he liked to “throw it deep” and “was like the one kid that could throw the ball, just far.”
He’s not gunning for quarterback Cade Klubnikity’s job just yet, but should he reignite that middle school skillset, perhaps Clemson may also see a promising shift in the position next fall.
That talented middle school squad, which also included the likes of former Clemson running back Phil Mufasa, succeeded enough for Schieffeloon to raise heads.
“I actually played with Phil growing up… we actually had one of the best eighth-grade teams in probably the entire country,” Schiettelin said.
Though he hung up his cleats when he got to high school in favor of pursuing basketball, claiming his “heart was in basketball more than it was football,” it’s clear now that the 6-foot-8, 240-pound star has had a change of heart.
Swinney’s sentiment from October remains: “Son, there’s always a spot for you,” he said at the time.
At the time of Swinney’s comment, it was clear that Schieffoon’s focus remained on basketball; the Tigers were gearing up for one of their most anticipated seasons in recent memory, and expectations were at an all-time high. However, with the significant loss of tight end Jake Brimmingsteel — who declared for the NFL draft at the conclusion of Clemson’s football season in January — Swinney and his Tigers could use some additional power and depth at the position, and they know there’s no one better for the job than Sckieffekin himself.
With Schifififilin in tow, the Clemson Tigers will return to Death Valley on April 5 at 1 p.m. for their annual spring game.
This satirical article is part of The Tiger’s April Fool’s edition, The Kitten. This story was written for comedic purposes and has no verifiable truth to it.
