T.J. Moore creates a buzz everywhere he goes.
The blue-chip wide receiver prospect who is one of the jewels of Clemson Football’s 2024 recruiting class, has arrived on campus and with his addition to the fold the Tigers’ wide receivers room is nearing completion.
Recent seasons have not been especially kind to the Clemson passing game, with injuries, attrition, and lack of explosiveness at the receiver position bringing the explosive passing attack to a halt. Now, with Moore finally on campus, quarterback Cade Klubnik has another elite weapon at his disposal.
In 2023, Klubnik passed for 2,844 yards and 19 touchdowns, but those numbers are still well below what Clemson fans are used to. The Tigers’ leading receiver a year ago was Tyler Brown, a true freshman, with 531 yards. Only three receivers tallied over 400 yards and one of those Beaux Collins, is now playing for Notre Dame after bolting to the transfer portal.
T.J. Moore, along with fellow freshman Bryant Wesco, have been heralded as the saviors of the Tigers’ wide receiver corps and Wesco, an early enrollee, lived up to that billing during April’s spring game. Now, Moore can prove his hype, too.
T.J. Moore moved in at Clemson on May 11 and will immediately get to work to help change the recent perception of the Clemson passing game. While Klubnik has been maligned at times, a lack of lethal playmakers, or injuries to the ones the Tigers do have, have limited productivity.
Now we can see what Cade is capable of with guys who can create a greater degree of separation in the open field. Moore, Wesco, and a now-older Brown might just be the wideouts to make that a reality. Along with junior Antonio Williams, Cole Turner, and Adam Randall among others, Clemson has its deepest collection of talent at the receiver position in several years.
T.J. Moore certainly has the pedigree to fit right in. Over his final two seasons of high school football at Tampa Catholic in Florida, Moore racked up 2,293 yards and 30 touchdowns while averaging 96 receiving yards per game. He averaged 25.4 yards per reception as a senior.
Nobody knows exactly what the Clemson offense, or the Tigers’ passing game, will truly look like until they hit the field for their first game on August 31 against Georgia. Still, optimism is as high, or should be as high, as it has been in a long time.
If T.J. Moore backs up the buzz with defense-busting plays in 2024, then the sky is indeed the limit for the Tigers.
