Clemson freshman defensive back and former Dorman star Polo Anderson suffered a knee injury at practice and will miss the 2026 season. "He tore is ACL yesterday," coach Dabo Swinney said Aug. 15 after the Tigers' first scrimmage. "I just hate that for him." Anderson was Clemson's No. 2-rated signee in the 2026 class, according to the 247Sports Composite.
The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Anderson was a cornerback at Dorman and will at least for now be a safety at Clemson. He was a Shrine Bowl player for the Cavaliers and a finalist for Mr. Football. Swinney said it's a good example of why the new five-year rule, which is four seasons within a five-year eligibility window, is positive. "Part of the good is he came in January and had a chance to learn the system," Swinney said. "Not only learn it but go through an offseason. And there is confidence from that. "Just because you're hurt, just because people aren't seeing you play on game day, nothing changes. You're still going to be grinding physically. You're still going to be developing mentally. Nothing changes. We're not going to waste this year. It's not going to show up on the stat book where everybody sees, but this is going to be a huge year for his development." Todd Shanesy covers high school athletics for the Greenville News, Spartanburg Herald-Journal and Anderson Independent Mail in the USA TODAY Network. Contact him by email at todd.shanesy@shj.com. Follow him on X, formerly called Twitter, at @ToddShanesySHJ. This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Polo Anderson injury update, Clemson freshman, Dorman star tears ACL, will miss season