Allen sees 'huge opportunity' for Clemson in Orange Bowl

Davis Allen is set for his Clemson finale in the Orange Bowl. (Photos via the Orange Bowl)

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Thu Dec 29 07:00:05 GMT-04:00 2022

CLEMSON - Senior tight end Davis Allen and the rest of the Tigers are preparing for the Orange Bowl this Friday (8 p.m./ESPN). Even though Allen is not going to be with the Tigers next season, he still says that this game brings opportunity for the team.

“This is a huge opportunity to gain momentum,” Allen said. “We know what he can do. We’ve known that all year, but we finally kind of started clicking and started playing complementary football. So, that was really good to see and gave a lot of confidence.”

This game not only serves as a momentum booster for the team as a whole but particularly for freshman quarterback Cade Klubnik, who will be making his first career start in the Orange Bowl. The offense has looked a lot different and more productive with Klubnik at the helm.

“He knows how to manage the offense,” Allen said. “He goes in and plays to the standard, so he helps everyone get to where they need to be.”

For Allen, this will also be his last game as a Clemson Tiger as he has officially declared for the NFL Draft. Clemson will still have a good group at tight end led by sophomore Jake Briningstool. He and Allen were the first duo of tight ends in Clemson’s history to both record at least four touchdown receptions in a single season. Briningstool averaged 11.6 yards per reception this season and had his best game against Wake Forest where he had six receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown.

Allen will still be missed on this Clemson offense though. He ranked No. 3 on the team in receiving yards with 394 and had an average of 30.3 receiving yards per game. Further, he led the Tigers in receiving touchdowns with five (tied with receiver Beaux Collins). Allen never cared about his stats though; the only thing he cared about was doing whatever he could to help the Tigers succeed.

“I don’t care about stats at all. I just want to see this team win,” Allen said. “That just brings me the most joy out of anything else. I just want to see this team win and be successful and that’s the goal every week.”

Tight ends are not that frequently drafted out of Clemson. In fact, since 1970, only seven tight ends coming out of Clemson have been drafted with the last one being Jordan Leggett in 2017 who was drafted in the fifth round by the New York Jets. Allen isn’t currently projected to get drafted this year though. According to NFL Draft Buzz, he ranks No. 21 among tight ends in the draft this year. While Allen is a taller tight end at 6-foot-6 inches, he does not have the speed of other tight ends as his 40-yard dash ranks in the 57th percentile among other tight ends. However, if he ran a good time at the NFL Combine, that could change.

What doesn’t help Allen is that tight ends are not a highly sought-after position among NFL teams. The Cincinnati Bengals and the Green Bay Packers are the teams most in need of a tight end, while the Jacksonville Jaguars are also in need of a tight end. If Allen were to get drafted and go to the Jaguars, he would be playing with former teammates Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne. Still, as he graduated with a marketing major this December as well as getting engaged, Allen has promising things ahead of him no matter where his NFL career takes him.