Dabo Swinney Names Final Piece of Clemson's Starting WR Trio

After months of offseason speculation over who would round out Clemson's starting wide receiver room, the question has finally been answered.

Clemson WR Tyler Brown has officially been named WR3 alongside T.J. Moore and Bryant Wesco Jr. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

It’s finally game week and as we creep closer to September 5, more details are being released ahead of Clemson Football’s season opener against LSU in Baton Rouge.

On Tuesday morning, head coach Dabo Swinney held a press conference, and while he covered plenty of ground over the nearly hour-long session, he finally answered the question everyone's been asking: who is the third starting wide receiver alongside the dynamic duo of T.J. Moore and Bryant Wesco Jr.?

Swinney pointed to senior Tyler Brown, who saw a limited role last season but will look to bounce back in the slot this year after having an “awesome” fall camp.

“Those three guys, I mean, that’s where it starts for us,” Swinney stated. “But they got to go produce — same thing. I think we got some good young talent at that position. Some guys that are pushing and earning an opportunity to go compete and play. But those three guys, you know, they’re going to have a great season, you know, they gotta get their jobs done.”

“And [Tyler Brown], he’s been awesome in camp and so that’s probably another position that if we can get those three guys to game day every week, you’re going to have a chance to be very productive, and you have some time to kind of develop these other guys on game day, not just at practice.”

While Brown has the starting spot for now, Swinney clearly wants to see production out of the fourth-year player before solidifying his role. That said, the last time he had an opportunity like this, he took it and ran with it.

As a true freshman in 2023, the 5-foot-11 wideout took over as the No. 1 option in the receiving corps for the Tigers following a season-ending injury Antonio Williams had suffered. He ended the season leading the team in receptions and yards with 52 catches for 531 yards and four touchdowns en route to earning Freshman All-American honors.

Since then, he hasn’t been able to get back to that level, as he missed the majority of the 2024 season with an ankle injury before becoming a backup last season, logging just 217 pass-play snaps as a junior in 2025.

Nevertheless, the talent is still there and that’s been emphasized throughout fall camp. 

As for what the rest of the room looks like, Clemson still has standout true freshman Naeem Burroughs — the top commit in the 2026 class — and Gordon Sellars III, who have both consistently showed flashes over the past few months. 

Fifth-year Tristan Smith also looked to be contending for a starting spot alongside the young pieces, however, Swinney says he’s just a “depth guy right now,” and hasn’t lived up to the expectations that were placed on him entering fall camp.

“He’s a depth guy right now,” Swinney told the media. “[He’s] not had as good a camp as we hoped he would have. But, you know, just a big body, talented guy, but he’s got to do it at practice.”

As for the rest of the depth chart, it includes: true freshman Connor Salmin, redshirt freshman Juju Preston, Wingate transfer Jaylen Brown-Wallace, former quarterback Chris Denson, and walk-ons Chase Byrd and Clark Sanderson.

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