Richard Yeargin III Excited For Return To Clemson
On June 4, 2017 everything changed for then Clemson defensive end Richard Yeargin III. Just months after finishing his junior season and a year removed from winning a National Championship, Yeargin was involved in a serious car accident, one that left him with a neck injury that many believed would end his football playing days. Football was put on the back burner, and his health and recovery became paramount in his young life.
Yeargin tried to delay it but after a year of still dealing with nerve damage he decided to have risky surgery to help increase the chances of playing football again. Once a 22 game starter, when he was ready to return he realized that his role with Clemson was most likely gone as the Tigers had added a bevy of blue chip recruits, including Christian Wilkins and Austin Bryant who were helping transform the Tigers defense into an elite unit.
So Yeargin decided to look elsewhere, and ended up at Boston College a school who had just graduated two defensive ends and were in dire need of some experienced depth, When he got to the Heights Addazio knew he would be perfect for the Eagles. "Well, when I met him, I said to myself, he'll fit in here beautifully." said Addazio, "He's like our guys. He's a great guy. So I thought that that would be a great fit."
But Yeargin did what he needed to do, he practiced with his new teammates and saw significant playing time at defensive end in the opener against Virginia Tech where he recorded his first assisted tackle. Since that game he has played in every game, got a half a sack against Wake Forest, and got his first start last week in BC's 45-24 win against NC State. "It's been seamless on every front", said Steve Addazio. "He's just melded right into our program as if he came here day one."
On Saturday Yeargin will face off against his old coach and teammates, a Clemson team that he he still has strong feelings about "I'm sure that going back, he certainly loved Clemson. He loved his experience, loved his teammates and his coaches. So I think -- going back, there's some excitement about going back" Steve Addazio told reporters in his weekly press conference. "They treated him great. He had a lot of respect and love for those people. So he's probably got a mixed bag of emotions going back in here...he's pretty fired up, as you can imagine he would be."