Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 10-51@ LSU | 7 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | Season-high 7 tackles |
| Wk 2 | W 22-7vs Georgia Southern | 6 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 13 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 |
#7
Jeremiah Alexander
Jeremiah Alexander was the No. 18 recruit in his class, a consensus five-star who was supposed to wreck SEC backfields. Three years and one transfer later, the story everyone in Clemson is telling is simpler and far more loaded: the talent is finally catching up to the ranking. Dabo Swinney's offseason refrain — "Jeremiah got better, and better, and better" — is the most-quoted line of the Tigers' spring for a reason.
6′2″ · 235 lb · Alabaster, AL · Thompson HS // Alabama
CFB Index 40 · #382 of 583 LBsHigh confidenceReturning to Clemson for 2026
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
13
tackles · 2026
1 PBU
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 7 tackles, at LSU
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Jeremiah Alexander was the No. 18 recruit in his class, a consensus five-star who was supposed to wreck SEC backfields. Three years and one transfer later, the story everyone in Clemson is telling is simpler and far more loaded: the talent is finally catching up to the ranking. Dabo Swinney's offseason refrain — "Jeremiah got better, and better, and better" — is the most-quoted line of the Tigers' spring for a reason.
- Signed as a 5-star recruit to Alabama in 2022.
- Transferred from Alabama to Clemson in 2025.
Jeremiah Alexander was the No. 18 recruit in his class, a consensus five-star who was supposed to wreck SEC backfields. Three years and one transfer later, the story everyone in Clemson is telling is simpler and far more loaded: the talent is finally catching up to the ranking. Dabo Swinney's offseason refrain — "Jeremiah got better, and better, and better" — is the most-quoted line of the Tigers' spring for a reason.
The hype-vs-production gap is the whole story here. Alexander arrived at Thompson High as a five-star edge, the No. 18 prospect in the country, committed to Alabama — and then his career quietly stalled, never delivering the carnage the ranking promised. He transferred to Clemson in early 2025, switched from edge rusher to off-ball linebacker, and spent year one as a rotation piece: 11 solo tackles, 1.5 for loss, a sack, three pass breakups and a fumble recovery across roughly 220 snaps in all 13 games. Useful, not yet the headline.
What changed the conversation is the people doing the talking. Defensive coordinator Tom Allen put it on the record in the spring: behind the established core, "Jeremiah is right in the mix" for one of the starting linebacker jobs — a three-way battle alongside Sammy Brown and Kobe McCloud after Luke Ferrelli left the room. Swinney has gone further, framing Alexander's year-two arc as the kind of steady internal climb the Tigers' rebuilt defense is banking on. Clemson beat writers list him among the team's top breakout candidates; the read on his tape is that he's stopped playing hesitant and started playing fast.
That's the forward stake the boards keep circling back to: a former five-star, a new position, a wide-open starting spot, and a coaching staff publicly vouching for him. Either 2026 is the season the pedigree finally converts into a starter's stat line next to Sammy Brown — or Alexander becomes the latest reminder that recruiting stars don't tackle anybody. The Tigers, rebuilding a defense that lost nine players to the NFL Draft, would very much like the former.
How he plays
Built like an edge rusher he no longer is — 6-2, 235 — and now learning to play downhill from the second level. The scouting read on him this offseason is consistent: he can run, he's physical, and after a tentative debut year he's stopped playing hesitant. As a converted edge he brings real heft and pop into the box and flashed it in limited 2025 snaps — 1.5 tackles for loss, a sack, three pass breakups and a fumble recovery in a rotational role. The projection is a violent, north-south linebacker who fits run gaps with edge-defender thump and still has the closing burst from his pass-rush days; the question 2026 answers is whether the instincts and angles catch up to the athletic tools. (No play-by-play percentiles available for a 220-snap rotational year — this is a scouting projection.)
The story
The hype-vs-production gap is the whole story here. Alexander arrived at Thompson High as a five-star edge, the No. 18 prospect in the country, committed to Alabama — and then his career quietly stalled, never delivering the carnage the ranking promised. He transferred to Clemson in early 2025, switched from edge rusher to off-ball linebacker, and spent year one as a rotation piece: 11 solo tackles, 1.5 for loss, a sack, three pass breakups and a fumble recovery across roughly 220 snaps in all 13 games. Useful, not yet the headline.
What changed the conversation is the people doing the talking. Defensive coordinator Tom Allen put it on the record in the spring: behind the established core, "Jeremiah is right in the mix" for one of the starting linebacker jobs — a three-way battle alongside Sammy Brown and Kobe McCloud after Luke Ferrelli left the room. Swinney has gone further, framing Alexander's year-two arc as the kind of steady internal climb the Tigers' rebuilt defense is banking on. Clemson beat writers list him among the team's top breakout candidates; the read on his tape is that he's stopped playing hesitant and started playing fast.
That's the forward stake the boards keep circling back to: a former five-star, a new position, a wide-open starting spot, and a coaching staff publicly vouching for him. Either 2026 is the season the pedigree finally converts into a starter's stat line next to Sammy Brown — or Alexander becomes the latest reminder that recruiting stars don't tackle anybody. The Tigers, rebuilding a defense that lost nine players to the NFL Draft, would very much like the former.
His career
He was on the field for 5 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
Built like an edge rusher he no longer is — 6-2, 235 — and now learning to play downhill from the second level. The scouting read on him this offseason is consistent: he can run, he's physical, and after a tentative debut year he's stopped playing hesitant. As a converted edge he brings real heft and pop into the box and flashed it in limited 2025 snaps — 1.5 tackles for loss, a sack, three pass breakups and a fumble recovery in a rotational role. The projection is a violent, north-south linebacker who fits run gaps with edge-defender thump and still has the closing burst from his pass-rush days; the question 2026 answers is whether the instincts and angles catch up to the athletic tools. (No play-by-play percentiles available for a 220-snap rotational year — this is a scouting projection.)
Written by our staff.
2022
- Signed with Alabama5-star out of Thompson
202511 games
The role got bigger.
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2022–2026
1 coach2022–2026
Clemson
Played his entire career under Dabo Swinney.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2022Alabama11-2HC: Nick Saban · Balanced
2023Alabama12-2HC: Nick Saban · Run-heavy
2024Alabama9-4HC: Kalen DeBoer · Run-leaning
2025Clemson7-6HC: Dabo Swinney · Balanced
2026Clemson1-1HC: Dabo Swinney · Balanced, slow tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
High confidence
Concern: tackles for loss (20th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 6.5 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.5 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Dabo Swinney
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2025
Rotational
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Index Score
40 · #382 of 583 LBs
Former five-star. Now #382 at the position.
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-ACC
Based on 2025: #52 of 74 ACC LBs
How the All-ACC estimate is computed
15% estimated, 95% confidence interval 13–17%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 22–7
6 TOT · 2 SOLO
With J. Smith — 39 AVG · 5 IN 20 · 46 LONG · T. Reynolds — 178 yds · 0 TD · 0 INT · QBR 11.3 · 38 rush yds (14 car)
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Built like an edge rusher he no longer is — 6-2, 235 — and now learning to play downhill from the second level. The scouting read on him this offseason is consistent: he can run, he's physical, and after a tentative debut year he's stopped playing hesitant. As a converted edge he brings real heft and pop into the box and flashed it in limited 2025 snaps — 1.5 tackles for loss, a sack, three pass breakups and a fumble recovery in a rotational role. The projection is a violent, north-south linebacker who fits run gaps with edge-defender thump and still has the closing burst from his pass-rush days; the question 2026 answers is whether the instincts and angles catch up to the athletic tools. (No play-by-play percentiles available for a 220-snap rotational year — this is a scouting projection.)
Our classifier reads him the same way: carries tight ends down the field in coverage.
2026 Outlook
Clemson
2026 Depth chart
Returning starter
Linebacker · Clemson · editorial
Returning around him
- 9 Clemson players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -4 net (11 in / 15 out)
2026 Award watch
- Butkus
Clemson · Last season: 7-6 (AP #12) · Talent rank #16 · 2026 recruiting class #20
DNA match
Player DNA
Coverage 'Backer
Carries tight ends and patrols the middle of the field in coverage.
LB
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Solon Page III’s 2021 season.
Matches Solon on
TFL rate
Weight
Hurry rate
Differs from Solon on
PD rate (higher)
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Justin Flowe's senior season at Arizona (2023).
Matches Justin on
Solo tackle rate
Sack rate
Tackle volume
Differs from Justin on
PD rate (higher)
Hurry rate (higher)
Player DNA
Players who play like Jeremiah Alexander
The linebacker corps · Clemson
- #47Sammy Brown107 tackles · 2025
- #7Jeremiah Alexander36 tackles · 2025
- #21Kobe McCloud26 tackles · 2025
- #50Fletcher Cothran9 tackles · 2025
- #53Joseph Roberto II2 tackles · 2025
7 more on the roster · Clemson team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology