Burley Ready to 'Rock and Roll'

Vic Burley was one of the freshmen primed to make an impact on the Clemson defensive line in 2023.

While other first-year linemen, Peter Woods and TJ Parker, made their marks, Burley wasn’t as fortunate, as he missed his freshman campaign with a knee injury. That misfortune continued in the spring, as a hamstring once again forced him to the sideline.

With fall camp set to kick off next week, Burley is now fully healthy and defensive tackles coach Nick Eason is expecting big things from the redshirt freshman.

“Vic is doing well, ready to rock and roll,” Eason said on Tuesday at Clemson’s annual media gathering. “As you look at our defensive line, you guys haven’t really seen him, and he is a big, athletic dude. Just faced a little adversity with injuries, but man, he’s doing really well. Excited to see what he’s gonna do.”

Burley has spent the summer months preparing to get back on the field. Not only from a physical standpoint, but also a mental one.

“Anytime you’ve experienced a lot of adversity, especially with injuries, not being on the field, that messes with your confidence,” Eason said. “And so, building his confidence back up, I think Pat (Richards) has done a really good job in the training room and our strength coach with coach (Joey) Batson, Dennis Love and all those guys in the weight room have done a really good job of just getting his strength back, building his confidence back up.”

Burley is a former 5-star prospect, winning 5A Defensive Player of the Year in Georgia as a senior, and Eason is confident he can get similar production out of the young defensive linemen.

“We always talk about the standard,” Eason said. “The standard is the standard. It’s my job as a coach to get the best out of Vic Burley, and everybody in my room. That’s on me, because I’m a reflection of my room.”

Now it’s about keeping Burley healthy, and if that happens, Eason is confident he will now get to make his mark on the Tigers’ defensive front.

“Just needs to stay healthy,” Eason said. “For the few plays (in the spring)… I mean, he came in the spring and had six one-on-ones, and won every single one of them in a row. If you can keep him healthy, he can be a force to be reckoned with.”

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