Clemson entered Thursday’s final preseason scrimmage hoping to put the finishing touches on a team preparing to face LSU. Instead, Dabo Swinney walked away calling it Clemson’s “worst practice of camp.” 

That is not exactly the report Clemson wanted with LSU preparation beginning Monday.

Swinney said the performance was not even close to Clemson’s previous work. The problems included procedural mistakes, formation errors, defensive offsides, poor situational awareness and repeated penalties, including costly mistakes in the red zone. 

Even more concerning was the quarterback play.

Every Clemson quarterback participated, and Swinney was unimpressed with all of them. He said nobody played well enough to win the day and that he did not consider any quarterback a winner coming out of the scrimmage. 

For a team preparing to enter Tiger Stadium against LSU, uncertainty and poor execution at quarterback are not encouraging signs.

The problems extended beyond quarterback. Clemson still has not settled its starting right guard position. Swinney listed several candidates but acknowledged that nobody has won the job. 

Defensive tackle remains another question. Swinney said Clemson does not currently have an established dominant player inside. Amare Adams is getting closer, but Swinney said he is not there yet. Clemson has even moved Dietrick Pennington from the offensive line to defensive tackle for limited snaps to provide additional depth. 

The Tigers are also dealing with personnel issues. Running back Jay Haynes suffered a setback while attempting to return to full speed. Wide receiver T.J. Moore missed his second scrimmage, while veteran receiver Cole Turner has been away from the team since the second day of camp for personal reasons. 

There is an important qualifier. Swinney limited several established players because he already considers them ready, making Thursday primarily an evaluation of players fighting for roles. But that may expose another concern: Clemson’s depth did not respond particularly well when tested. Swinney said some players who believed they were ready were exposed. 

Clemson will begin LSU preparation Monday.

After Thursday’s performance, the Tigers have plenty to clean up.

And LSU suddenly has even more reason to like what it sees.

Sources

The Clemson Insider, Thursday’s Clemson Scrimmage Notes: Worst Practice of Camp
https://www.theclemsoninsider.com/2026/08/20/thursdays-clemson-scrimmage-notes-worst-practice-of-camp/⁠

TigerNet, Back to School Blues: Dabo Swinney Recaps Uneven Final Scrimmage
https://www.tigernet.com/clemson-football/story/back-to-school-blues-dabo-swinney-recaps-uneven-final-scrimmage-24684⁠