Bentancur Turning Heads in Loaded Clemson Tight End Room
Head coach Dabo Swinney is no stranger to stacked position rooms at Clemson. He's had a plethora of outstanding receivers and defensive linemen during his time as leader of the program and this year, he describes his tight end group as “one of the best rooms on our team from top to bottom."
With the return of senior standout Jake Briningstool, who is considered a 2024 All-American and John Mackey Award candidate, and a deep group of emerging talents including Josh Sapp, Olsen Patt-Henry, Markus Dixon, and Banks Pope, the tight end room at Clemson is talented and full of potential. But even with such talent and experience returning, a freshman garnered attention even before the start of fall camp.
Christian Bentancur, a 6'4", 243-pound four-star recruit out of Woodstock, Illinois, arrived in Clemson this summer as the No. 6 tight end and No. 74 overall player in the 2024 recruiting class. While he wasn’t present for spring camp, Bentancur’s name was already circulating among the coaches and players
Swinney, who has seen his fair share of elite athletes, was quick to acknowledge the freshman’s upside: "He’s probably one of the most pure athletes that we’ve signed," he said before fall camp. "This kid is an elite athlete. We’ll see if he’ll go be a great tight end for the Tigers, but he’s got all the attributes."
While Swinney wasn’t able to observe summer workouts directly, he heard plenty of chatter from the players about Bentancur. “It’s always fun when you hear these guys chit-chat about the young guys coming in and who catches their eye," he added on Aug 1. "Bentancur is one of those guys that will catch your eye quick. Just watching him move, how he moves."
As fall camp wrapped up and the Tigers shifted focus to their season-opening battle against No. 1 Georgia in the Aflac Kickoff Classic on Aug. 31 in Atlanta, GA, Bentancur’s performance has gone beyond just living up to his recruiting hype – he’s earning respect from his veteran teammates.
Dixon, a redshirt freshman, has been particularly impressed. "I think Christian is super athletic, super smart," he said. "The kid is just amazing to be around. I just completely love him. His game, honestly, you see flashes of him catching, running – all in all, I think he’s gonna be a great tight end."
Briningstool is recognized as the leader of the tight end room and an example to Bentancur and others of what a great tight end resembles. Last year, he had career highs in receptions (50), receiving yards (498) and receiving touchdowns (five). He also set a tight end single-game record with his 126 receiving yards against Miami and tied another with nine receptions in the 2023 Gator Bowl 38-35 victory over Kentucky.
Furthermore, he is closing in on two-time John Mackey Award finalist Jordan Legette's receptions record of 112. He needs 35 receptions to add to his total of 78 to make him the all-time leader in that category.
Even with the local and national spotlight on him, the 6-foot-6, 243-pound Brentwood, TN native was equally effusive in his praise of Bentancur. “He’s going to be a really good player," stated Briningstool. "I think right now, it’s just so natural for him, just running routes, catching the ball. He looks really good at it. I think the stuff in the box, he’s really good at that too. I think he’s just a natural tight end, and he’ll just evolve as he gets more accustomed to college football and how the college game is, and more accustomed to our offense and how everything works.
"He’s gonna be good, I promise."
That's high praise from Briningstool, who has also been complimentary of the other tight ends like Swinney. But like Swinney, watching Bentancur in camp is why he thinks he's a "natural" and "good" is a word inserted in conversations about the freshman.
Swinney’s final thoughts on the Bentancur from Thursday's press conference.
"I tell ya, Bentancur, man – he might be as good of a kid as we’ve ever signed at that position. I mean, that’s pretty strong praise," noted Swinney, who has seen Legette, Dewayne Allen, Davis Allen, and of course, Briningstool, a unanimous top 3 tight end in the 2021 recruiting class, at Clemson. "I’ve got a strong room. That kid, he’s gonna be a fun one. He’s going to be a fun one to coach and watch develop. He’s just a natural player."
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