Playing time breakdown: Clemson football through six games

Hunter Johnson saw his most playing time since the Kent State opener.

by Brandon Rink - Staff Writer - Tue Oct 10 15:02:37 GMT-05:00 2017

Clemson went deeper into the bench against the Deacs with some Tigers coming back from injury – and a prominent starter leaving early due to injury in Kelly Bryant.

Taking a deeper look by position and the production that came with those snaps…

Noting week six from the Clemson participation report (see full list below):

* Welcome back, Hunter Johnson, who played his first snaps in three games (7) and his most series since the Kent State opener, leading Clemson to a score on one of his two drives with a 13-yard touchdown pass. The former five-star prospect has attempted a pass in 12 of his 30 snaps with 6.8 yards per, completing 11-of-12 throws.

* Junior tight end Cannon Smith was on the other end of that Johnson TD, playing his most career snaps (24) to notch his first career score. After missing two games with a knee injury, D.J. Greenlee played 12 snaps, while Milan Richard logged 49-plus plays for a fourth-straight game (52). Since his two catches for 70 yards in the opener, Richard has been held to 6.3 yards per reception.

* After seeing the field 66 percent of the RB plays at Virginia Tech, Tavien Feaster narrowly edged Travis Etienne in snaps Saturday (32-28), while Adam Choice returned the mix (15) after suffering an ankle injury before the Hokies game. C.J. Fuller received the same split of the opportunities as the game before (17 percent), with two carries for six yards and one receiving target (a drop).

* As Clemson coach Dabo Swinney noted in his Tuesday press conference, eight Tiger O-linemen played at least 30 snaps. Sophomore guard John Simpson notched over 30 snaps for the second time in three games (32).

* Sophomore receiver Diondre Overton played his season-high in snaps (28) with two catches for 26 yards. Freshman Amari Rodgers matched his play count from the Kent State opener (26) with two catches for 11 yards.

* Sophomore linebacker Tre Lamar posted his career-best in tackles (10) in his third-least opportunities this season (31). Junior J.D. Davis played 20-plus snaps for a third-straight game (29) with one stop.

* Junior defensive end Austin Bryant averaged a tackle every 4.5 snaps versus the Deacs. Redshirt freshmen linemen Xavier Kelly and Nyles Pinckney both tallied a negative-yardage play in 13 snaps or less (Kelly, 1 sack in 9 snaps; Pinckney 1 TFL in 13).

* After playing 71 snaps at Virginia Tech, Mark Fields settled into a more normal rotation with 40 plays, grabbing three tackles and a pass breakup. Trayvon Mullen returned from a week off after going through concussion protocol – totaling 28 snaps with three tackles and a pass breakup. Tying his highest snap total (28), freshman A.J. Terrell posted two pass breakups and a tackle.

* Sophomore safety Tanner Muse notched eight tackles in 47 snaps with a pass breakup. Freshman Isaiah Simmons came off the bench with four stops in 21 plays.

Tracking Clemson's snaps against Wake Forest:

(Noted: Season totals in parentheses. Snaps are tracked for depth-chart contributors and select scholarship athletes. Players are listed at their positions by the week’s depth chart. The participation report is provided by Clemson.)

Offense (30)

Quarterback (3): Kelly Bryant** 66 (395), Zerrick Cooper 16 (44), Hunter Johnson 7 (30).

Running Back (4): Tavien Feaster 32 (185), Travis Etienne 28 (74), Adam Choice 15 (69), C.J. Fuller 12 (116).

Wide Receiver (9): Ray Ray McCloud 49 (269), Hunter Renfrow 44 (270), Deon Cain 44 (269), Diondre Overton 28 (105), Amari Rodgers 26 (109), Trevion Thompson 26 (107), T.J. Chase 20 (88), Tee Higgins 18 (90), Cornell Powell 15 (74).

Tight End (4): Milan Richard 52 (298), Cannon Smith 24 (80), D.J. Greenlee 12 (63), Shadell Bell 3 (23).

Offensive Line (10): Justin Falcinelli 80 (405), Mitch Hyatt 71 (372), Taylor Hearn 71 (369), Tyrone Crowder 57 (289), Sean Pollard 50 (189), Tremayne Anchrum 42 (263), Maverick Morris 35 (157), John Simpson 32 (119), Gage Cervenka 9 (38), Cade Stewart 3 (50).

Defense (25)

Defensive End 4): Clelin Ferrell 48 (305), Austin Bryant 36 (266), Chris Register 35 (96), Xavier Kelly 9 (46).

Defensive Tackle (6): Christian Wilkins 45 (264), Dexter Lawrence 30 (203), Jabril Robinson 21 (107), Albert Huggins 18 (54), Nyles Pinckney 13 (67), Sterling Johnson 7 (48).

Linebackers (6): Kendall Joseph 54 (309), Dorian O’Daniel 48 (273), Tre Lamar 31 (203), J.D. Davis 29 (119), Jalen Williams 15 (115), Chad Smith 11 (67).

DB (CB/S/NB - 9): Tanner Muse 47 (268), Van Smith 47 (210), Mark Fields 40 (189), Ryan Carter 31 (251), Trayvon Mullen 28 (194), A.J. Terrell 28 (118), K’Von Wallace 23 (177), Isaiah Simmons 21 (130), Amir Trapp 10 (37).

Did not play: OL Chandler Reeves (25), DE Justin Foster** (28), CB Marcus Edmond** (14).

Special teams-only: LB James Skalski (28), TE J.C. Chalk (22), LB Shaq Smith (17), S Nolan Turner (16) LB Judah Davis (15), S Denzel Johnson (9).

Can still redshirt (7): CB LeAnthony Williams, OG Matt Bockhorst, OT Blake Vinson, QB Chase Brice, OT Noah NeHond, LB Baylon Spector, DE Jordan Williams.

**Injured pregame or in-game.

Clemson-Virginia Tech