Clemson Defender Placed on ESPN's Preseason All-American List

Clemson Defender Placed on ESPN's Preseason All-American List Earlier this week, Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney tried to quash any egos in the building with a stern message about the quality of the roster this summer.  "No. Everybody's just working," Swinney said.  "There's a bunch of nobodies. We'll see. We'll see if anybody becomes somebody as we play some games." The Tigers do have a somebody on defense that could make an impact on the national stage this season. ESPN identified linebacker Sammy Brown as a first-team preseason All-American. Via ESPN: Put simply, Brown was one of the most productive linebackers in college football a year ago. Operating alongside veteran captain Wade Woodaz, Brown accounted for a team-high 106 total tackles (13.5 for loss) with five sacks and 18 run stops, which tied for 10th among FBS linebackers last fall.  "A first-team All-ACC pick in 2025, the junior defender checks all the boxes. He returns as the face of coordinator Tom Allen's defense in a critical season at Clemson." - From ESPN Brown will be a part of a defense that needs to lead the team as a new-look offense comes into its own early this fall. He'll be counted on to fly all over the field to make tackles, and will be huge in stopping the run. Brown was disappointed by Clemson's 7-6 record last season. In the spring, he said he planned to work even harder to improve as a linebacker and help the team win more games this year. "I feel like the biggest thing that I and a couple of other teammates have collectively learned is, like, you can work really, really, really hard and do everything right, and it still won't go your way," Brown said, via TigerNet. "I feel like last year was the hardest I ever worked, and it's not the result that we wanted." "So all that tells me is that I've got to work harder this year, and we've got to work harder this year as a team. And, you know, doing extra stuff, coming in on Saturdays, doing extra stuff after practice, just being able to do more to set the bar even higher." It's going to take hard work for a team full of nobodies to compete for the ACC. Expect Brown to lead the way on defense.