ACC Football: 5 storylines to watch in spring 2019
By Dana Becker
5. Defending champs appear to be ACC favorites again
After splitting time through the first few weeks with Kelly Bryant, Trevor Lawrence was handed control of the Clemson offense and ran with it, all the way to a national championship.
Along the way, Lawrence wrapped up another ACC title for the Tigers and head coach Dabo Swinney, who have now placed themselves as the leaders of the pack in the league with four consecutive championships.
Lawrence will be thrust into the spotlight this year after a true freshman season in which he threw for 3,280 yards with 30 touchdowns and just four interceptions. How the sophomore handles it will be key in Clemson’s hopes of repeating.
We already saw a bit of that when a video was released of Lawrence pushing a male during an intramural basketball game earlier this year. He claims to have learned from the incident.
Travis Etienne is also back after a 1,700-yard season with 26 touchdowns, along with breakout wide receiver Justyn Ross, who hit the 1,000-yard mark, and Tee Higgins, who had 12 touchdowns. With an entire offseason together, the Tiger offense could be even more dangerous this season.
As set as the offense is at Clemson this year, the defense will see several new faces. The vaunted defensive line of Christian Wilkins, Clelin Ferrell, Austin Bryant and Dexter Lawrence, collectively known as the “Power Rangers,” are off to the NFL. The Tigers were able to still dominate Alabama and Notre Dame despite Lawrence being suspended, which just shows the depth the program has amassed at that position.