Dabo Swinney Updates QB Chris Denson's Progress in Moving Positions

As fall camp started last week for the Clemson Tigers, head coach Dabo Swinney had a scenario that had him look to change up the position of one of his players: former quarterback Chris Denson.

While some believed the second-year quarterback would give competition to expected starter Christopher Vizzina behind center, the spring saw the opposite happen. Denson fell behind in the depth chart and barely played in Clemson’s spring game a few months ago.

Last Wednesday, Swinney provided the media with an update about where he stands on potentially switching his role in 2026.

“That’s a position that every head coach has something and every head coach kind of gravitates toward things,” he said, “whether it’s meetings or the practice field or things like that.”

Swinney said that Denson would be seeing reps at multiple different positions next season, whether it was behind center in more run-heavy plays, running back, or at wide receiver. During Clemson’s open practice period to the media last week, Denson was in a yellow, non-contact jersey, but he was working out as a wide receiver.

Despite being hands-on about that position group in the past, Swinney wants to see his position coaches develop him on their own.

“We got some great coaches over there, and I kind of try to let them do their thing, but it’s still one of those things that I just see things from a certain lens,” he said, “and so I haven’t really had a chance to see him in that light yet, so we’ll see.”

But those who watched Clemson’s win over Furman last November know that the physical tools aren’t anything to worry about. Denson only had two drives in the fourth quarter, but both ended in touchdowns. The Plant City, Fla., native had 106 yards on six carries with both a passing and rushing touchdown.

Now, it’s only a matter of where Swinney can get the athlete to have success like that next season.

“Obviously, we know he can run, and he can change directions and that’s easy to evaluate, but I have not had a chance to really evaluate him as a wideout yet, and I don’t even know if that’s the best position for him,” he said.

Clemson still has multiple weeks of fall camp remaining before it heads to Baton Rouge, La., to face LSU on Sept. 5, meaning Swinney can find those answers in the near future. However, when one opportunity ended for Denson at quarterback, another opened up.

Only time will tell to see if he can take advantage of being a gadget-type player for the Tigers moving forward.

“I can’t really say that until I go through the process with him, but he’s done a great job. I mean, he looks great physically, looks great, so [I’m] excited,” Swinney said. “He’s one of those guys that we've got to figure out what’s the best spot for him, and then we’ll go from there.”

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