More Thoughts on Clemson Tigers Commit Will Putnam

A few more words about Will Putnam:

I’ve watched as many Plant games as I can get my hands on now. Oh boy, I’m even more impressed and excited than before.

First, I knew Putnam was a championship wrestler who understands leverage, but I was kind of glossing over that and not connecting it to his play on the field. Putnam knows through his understanding of leverage how to finish defenders off and pancake them. He has a serious nasty streak and the minute you are off balance as a defender, you will find your backside planted hard.

Next, Putnam played two ways on offense and defense. I knew that, but didn’t realize he was a pretty good Dlineman. He shows his athleticism and ability to move. This guy is relentless. He is playing the entire game and not wearing down. He even took some snaps at fullback, carrying the ball. He played Guard and Tackle at Plant. He is a Guard in college, but was able to hang at Tackle.

His technique is pretty advanced from what I can see. He executes the Plant offense and can pull and seal effectively. He gets down the field to the second level. The only major flaw I see is in some of his pass blocking. He does have a good punch when he uses it, but at times he lunges and gets caught overcommitting. A move inside will mitigate those minor deficiencies.

Did I mention his mean streak? He likes the contact and moves people in the run game against competition in the state of Florida. Plays through the whistle the entire game. He is going to make other lineman around him better and more tenacious. He carries 285 really well and won’t need much work to be ready to go. Since he is enrolling early I don’t think it is unreasonable to project him in the two deep next year.

Last thing to realize is despite the recruiting process and going back and forth, this is a solid young man from a solid family. His father is military (could be a Colonel according to Plant Head Coach Weiner) and they wanted to be thorough during the process. Putnam is excited to be a Clemson Tiger and certainly wasn’t settling in any way.

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