Draft Stock the last thing on Clelin Ferrell's mind heading into Spring Practice

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney still finds himself shaking his head from time to time in disbelief when he sees his entire defensive line in one room, back for another year.

The decision for the players to come back has sort of worn off on him by now, but at the first team meeting he couldn’t help but smile after seeing Christian Wilkins, Austin Bryant, and Clelin Ferrell.

When the news broke that all three linemen were going to come back for one last hurrah, most people who followed Clemson football in the slightest were surprised.

“Why would these players come back when they are almost guaranteed first-rounders?” many of us asked.

According to USA Today’s Draft Wire, Ferrell was a projected to get picked 11th overall; Wilkins projected 22nd overall, and Bryant projected to go somewhere in the second round. Many analysts had the three linemen going in different spots all over their respective draft board, but there was one consensus: they should be picked within the first two rounds.

So when Swinney was asked three weeks ago on National Signing Day what his players told him was the reason they were coming back, his response was they weren’t satisfied.

“The bottom line is: they didn’t get the grade they wanted,” Swinney said. “There’s a lot of rhetoric that gets created during that process with these people (draft analysts). Well, guess what? That person doesn’t own a team, they don’t get a pick, and has no influence either. Yet that gets put out there, and it’s a machine. If you aren’t educated in the process, you can make some bad decisions on some bad information.”

Swinney reiterated that day he and his staff do the best job they can to use the relationships they have developed with teams in the NFL to figure out if teams believe certain players should pack their bags or stay in school. Players should make their decisions “based on reality.”

Wilkins and Ferrell both got second-round grades, Swinney revealed. Plenty of people got on the phone with the two highly-rated players to talk them, give them information, and help them. Bryant was told he would probably go in the third round.

“Their goal is to be a no-doubt first-rounder,” Swinney continued. “They made the decision to come back, and that’s their reason. Simple as that. I think If they got first-round grades from the NFL committee, they would have gone. But they didn’t. I think both those guys are highly motivated to come back and have great years.”

Wednesday before Clemson’s first spring practice, Swinney again reminded the media that the three linemen are back with a purpose.

“They want to personally improve their draft stock,” said Swinney. “That’s one of the main reasons they came back. Clelin wants to graduate, and Austin wants to finish up, which they’ll do.”

As practice ended, Ferrell trotted over to share his thoughts on his first day of practice. It was the first time he had spoken with the media since he made his decision to return to school.

Ferrell was his natural self, not afraid to say what was on his mind. On his decision to come back to Clemson, he said he went back and forth on it on many occasions. It’s an option he felt like he had to consider.

His second-round draft grade didn’t necessarily surprise him, but Ferrell wanted to take what he was told with a grain of salt.

“It didn’t really matter; I don’t pay attention to that stuff,” Ferrell said. “I wasn’t really surprised by it; I was more like ‘OK, I’m not going to go off of what they say.’ (My decision) was (based) more so on how I felt. I was kind of blessed to hear that. A second-round grade, that’s kind of crazy for me, only playing two years.”

To most players, going back to school because of a second-round grade would serve as all the motivation they needed for the following season. Not for Ferrell.

“I don’t really need any motivation other than the motivation I have for myself,” Ferrell added. “I want to leave a strong legacy.”

Ferrell continued, “People think I came back just to improve my draft stock and that really was one of the last reasons why I came back. When I came to Clemson, I wanted to be one of the best players to come through here… That was kind of the biggest thing for me, not just to improve my draft stock. If that was the only reason why I came back, then there’s no reason to come back.”

Ferrell wants to be the dominant player he knows he is capable of being. In 14 games last year, the defensive end had 66 tackles and 9.5 sacks, a 22 tackle increase from 2016.

“Just being dominant in all aspects of the game,” Ferrell said on what he wants to improve on this offseason. “ In my career, I’ve played the run, the pass. My play away from the ball has been decent, but it’s just the aspect of being dominant at the point of attack, being more physical there.”

Regardless of the motivation for Ferrell and the rest of the defensive line to return, Swinney sure is glad to have them in his arsenal. Because of a Clemson defense, many think will be the best in the country returning eight starters, Clemson is No. 1 tons of “Way-Too-Early” polls for 2018.

“They are great players, but they are great leaders,” Swinney said. “Austin, Clelin, and Christian, they’ve got huge futures without football. They are just strong men. They love to lead; they love to hold their teammates accountable; they hold themselves to incredibly high standards.”