Clemson DC Tom Allen Praises Ashton Hampton's Growth Entering 2026 Season

On Tuesday, multiple Clemson coaches and players, including defensive coordinator Tom Allen, spoke to the media ahead of the program's season opener against LSU this weekend.

While he spoke about everything related to the Tigers' defense and the opposing players they've been scouting heading into the matchup, Allen couldn't resist praising the team's starting cornerback, Ashton Hampton.

With Avieon Terrell now gone and set to start for the Atlanta Falcons in about two weeks, the junior needed to take that next step over the offseason to prove he belonged as the primary cornerback. On all levels, that's exactly what he's done.

"I can say yes [he has taken that next step], emphatically," Allen began. "And I can't always say that, you know, and if I couldn't, I wouldn't, you know, but all I know is what I see every day, and the energy he's brought every day. And he's always kind of had that type of personality, but it's the consistency of his attention to details is what I've seen him really really grow. And he's just matured, you know, he's matured in his ability to how he approaches practice."

As Allen noted, the Tallahassee, Florida, native has shown these qualities over the past two years, but now, he's been more consistent than ever. And that's what it takes to be in the current position he's in: showing up with the same mentality and intensity every single day.

That said, it's about that time when NFL scouts start reaching out. Given his physical tools, versatility (he switched from safety to corner coming into Clemson), high motor, aggressiveness in both coverage and against the run, and now his leadership, Allen tells evaluators to see it for themselves.

"And it's just not been [up and down] at all, you know, before the highs were super high. But no, it's been like this [straight line of consistency]. It shows up every day," Allen emphasized. "Same person, you know, and I'm getting lots of questions by, you know, NFL guys about him, you know, it's just, 'Hey man, just come to practice and watch him.' It's just every day, and it was in the workouts, and it was in the hill runs, I mean, he dominated the hills, which is not easy to do. And it was, once again, every day."

Hampton's response to 2025 further demonstrated his growth in Allen's eyes. After a disastrous last season, when the Tigers entered the year as the No. 4 team in the country before ultimately stumbling to a 7-6 finish, the two immediately met to discuss his future and what he wanted to accomplish this year.

Allen also made sure to credit cornerbacks coach Mike Reed for helping guide that development.

"He just carried that, you know, we met after the season was over, talking about his future, what he wanted to accomplish and different things and put the challenges out here, what he wants to do," he continued. "So it's been neat to see him respond to that, you know, and coach [Mike Reed] 's done a great job with helping him take this next step. I say he's got to go be that guy on game day, you know."

The second-year Clemson defensive coordinator continued to praise Hampton before finishing up, pointing to how instrumental Penn State transfer Elliot Washington has been to his growth, and vice versa, likening the competition in the position group to iron sharpening iron.

He also threw senior Braden Strozier in the mix of that conversation, mentioning that he's had a great fall camp.

"I think Ashton's been a big part of elevating the guys around him, and elevating the standard of how we go play that position and obviously the long history here of a lot of great corners here at Clemson. To me, I'm excited for him to have a great season."

Ahead of the 2026 season, multiple outlets project Hampton as a first-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft. Still, only time will tell if that holds, as we all know draft stock can fall quickly over the course of a season (i.e., Cade Klubnik in 2025), just as it can rise quickly (i.e., Blake Miller in 2025).

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