Quarterback Tajh Boyd, who broke the ACC record for career touchdown passes (107), was drafted by the New York Jets.
All-American Sammy Watkins, who had 101 catches last season, was drafted by the Buffalo Bills. Fellow receiver Martavis Bryant was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
All-ACC third-team running back Roderick McDowell, who rushed for 1,025 yards as a fifth-year senior last fall, has also turned in his Clemson uniform.
That quartet helped Clemson rank eighth in the nation in scoring offense (40.2 ppg) last season.
But the team’s new starting quarterback, senior Cole Stoudt, promises that the Tigers will remain prolific this season.
“People underestimate the Clemson offense this year,” Stoudt said at the ACC’s recent preseason media gathering in Greensboro, North Carolina. “They’re all saying, ‘Oh, you lost Martavis Bryant. Oh, you lost Sammy Watkins, Tajh Boyd and all these guys.’ We have weapons that we’re going to use. And they’re all veterans. I’m excited about this year. It’s going to be fun.
“Some people are going to be shocked about what we’re going to do.”
Even though seven offensive starters must be replaced from a team that went 11-2 and beat Ohio State in the Orange Bowl, the Tigers do have continuity in a few key roles.
This will be Dabo Swinney’s sixth full season as Clemson’s coach. It will be the fourth season at Clemson for offensive coordinator Chad Morris, the guru behind the team’s spread attack.
“You’re not going to find many teams out there that have had the same head coach and the same offensive coordinator for … four years,” said Stoudt, the son of former NFL QB Cliff Stoudt. “We’re not learning any new offense. We still have the same formula.
“We’re still the same fast-tempo offense.”
These days in college football, quarterbacks often transfer in search of more playing time. But Stoudt, who was Boyd’s backup the past three seasons, never did.
Now it’s finally his turn.
“Cole is more than ready to be the leader,” Swinney said. “He’s been patient. He’s prepared very well to be the starter [the past three years], not knowing if he was even going to play, and he’s always been ready. And he never complained, not one time.”
Stoudt said he does not feel any pressure.
“I am perfectly prepared for this,” he said.
Nevertheless, the team’s standouts this year are on the other side of the ball.
Seven starters are back on defense, including three players who made the media’s preseason All-ACC team — defensive end Vic Beasley, defensive tackle Grady Jarrett and linebacker Stephone Anthony.
Beasley said the defense is the team’s strength this season. He was an All-American as a fourth-year junior last year, when he recorded 13 sacks.
Earlier this year, he considered turning pro. The NFL’s advisory board told him he would likely be a second-round pick if he entered the 2014 draft.
“I thought he was leaving,” Swinney said.
But Beasley decided to return for his senior season.
“I wanted to get my degree and I wanted to leave a legacy at Clemson, … like breaking the [school] sack record,” Beasley said.
He needs eight more sacks to break the Clemson career record [28], which is held by Michael Dean Perry and Gaines Adams.
Sticking around could also help him become a first-round draft pick next year. He is rated the No. 1 defensive end in the nation by the Lindy’s Sports preview magazine.
Not bad for someone who was recruited by Clemson as a running back.
He was moved to tight end while redshirting in 2010. He was switched to linebacker for the 2011 season. He was moved to defensive end for the 2012 season, when he was a third-year sophomore, and shined as a backup.
“You get guys like Sammy who show up and they’re no assembly required … and then you have guys like Vic who have everything in there but you’ve got to kind of put it together,” Swinney said.
Clemson is ranked
No. 16 in the USA Today Top 25 preseason coaches poll.
The Tigers are picked to finish second in the Atlantic Division behind 2013 national champ Florida State in the ACC media poll and in three preview magazines.