NFL combine rewind: Confident Tigers talk big, showcase skills in Indianapolis

Nate Wiggins delivered on his words about showing off speed. (Photo: Trevor Ruszkowski / USATODAY)

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Tue Mar 05 07:00:02 GMT-04:00 2024

The NFL combine provides a chance for prospects to show NFL teams what they are capable of, particularly the players who are not first-round prospects. Clemson has a mix of first-round talent with cornerback Nate Wiggins and linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr., in addition to other players who are not first-round prospects in running back Will Shipley, defensive tackles Ruke Orhorhoro and Tyler Davis, and defensive end Xavier Thomas. All of these players made their mark in one way or another at the combine.

For Wiggins, he called his shot in speaking with Mike Florio and Chris Simms ahead of the combine, saying he would run a high 4.2 40-yard dash; he was right. With the second-highest 40 at the NFL combine, Wiggins put up a 4.28 and ran as fast as 24.05 miles per hour, according to Next Gen Stats. Unfortunately, he also injured his hip on the attempt and could not compete in the rest of the combine. He is expected to be ready for Clemson’s Pro Day on March 14. Despite being a first-round prospect with obvious speed, Wiggins acknowledged when speaking with Florio and Simms that he has some things to work on going into the NFL.

“I can get better at being more physical at the line of scrimmage and tackling, helping the run support,” Wiggins said. “More patient at the line of scrimmage.”

Trotter is the son of NFL great Jeremiah Trotter, who spent most of his NFL career with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles have interviewed Trotter, who said he “got good vibes” from their coaching staff. Trotter also mentioned he had talked with the Pittsburgh Steelers and their head coach, Mike Tomlin. There are some concerns about Trotter’s size despite his impact on the field, but his football IQ is clearly high, part of why he has drawn such interest from contenders like the Eagles and Steelers.

“I feel like I have a lot of capability of being a three-down linebacker. I have a variety of talent in my game and a lot of versatility,” Trotter said. “I feel like my instincts in blitzing, that’s a key part of blitzing, as a linebacker especially, being able to tell and read if I’m one-on-one with a running back, if he’s leaning too much, if he’s sitting light, gives me good insight on what kind of move I want to do on a back to be able to get that one-on-one and win.”

Shipley was a very strong presence during his time with Clemson. In the 2022 season, he had 1,182 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. In his final season, while his rushing yards were less, he also developed in the passing game and had his first receiving touchdowns. He has talked with some running back-needy teams, such as the Buffalo Bills, and an informal meeting with the Houston Texans. Currently, Shipley is not viewed as the top running back in the draft; however, he stated during his media availability that he is the top all-purpose running back in this draft.

“I am the No. 1 all-purpose back in this draft. There’s no doubt about it because I can catch the football. I’m versatile. You can throw me out in the slot, I catch the ball, make plays, make DBs miss. But I can also take 20 carries up the gut and make an impact that way while also protecting the quarterback, which is a huge deal in the NFL,” Shipley said. “My film shows what I can do on the field. There’s no doubt about that. Being able to meet with these teams and show them the person that I am and the intangibles that I have that will result in success for me at the next level.”

Orhorhoro has also generated a lot of interest. He has met with “pretty much all the teams,” including the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Dallas Cowboys. Interest has also come from the Jacksonville Jaguars, where his former teammates, quarterback Trevor Lawrence and running back Travis Etienne, currently play.

“It’d be cool, having two of my guys that I played with over there, had the opportunity to play with both of them for two years, my freshman and sophomore year, and just seeing the way those guys led the offense and we knew that had our backs and so, it’d be cool going over there,” Orhorhoro said.

During the combine, he ran a 4.89 40-yard dash time. In the run-the-hoop drill, he reached a speed of 14.05 miles per hour, the fifth-fastest speed in that drill. For a player who is nearly 300 pounds, that is quite an impressive feat. However, he excelled the most in the bench press, where he had 29 reps at 225 pounds, which tied for third place in the combine. One player who also had 29 reps was Davis.

Davis also did well in the run-the-hoop drill, reaching a speed of 14.12 miles per hour, which was third in that drill. His 40-yard dash was not as good with 5.02 seconds. Davis, who participated in the Senior Bowl, ranks No. 121 overall according to NFL Mock Draft Database. He has garnered interest from the Steelers and Denver Broncos through informal interviews, as well as the Philadelphia Eagles.

Thomas recorded one of the fastest 40-yard dash times among the Clemson defensive players, 4.62, which was also the fourth-fastest time among all the defensive linemen at the combine.

The next major step for all these players is the NFL Draft, which starts on April 25 (8 p.m./ABC/ESPN/NFL Network). It will continue on April 26 (7 p.m./same networks) with the second and third rounds before concluding on April 27 (noon/same networks) with the fourth through seventh.