James

Skalski

Skalski exited last Saturday’s loss to NC State with a shoulder injury. HC Dabo Swinney was confident he’d be able to give it a go against Boston College, and that ultimately turned out to be the case. Both of Clemson’s starting DT are injured, so Skalski and Clemson’s defense as a whole are going to have their work cut out for them.

Skalski left Saturday’s loss to NC State with the shoulder injury. Swinney didn’t elaborate further on his comments, but from the sounds of it, Skalski may not miss any more game action. Which would be good, because Clemson is dealing with multiple key injuries at the moment to Skalski’s teammates. Clemson, 2-2, hosts Boston College this weekend.

Skalski’s name is on our minds now because of the targeting penalty against Ohio State, but he’s been a solid ‘backer for the Tigers for the better part of two seasons now. At 6-foot and 240-pounds, Skalski rocks a short, stout frame that helps him take on blocks down in the box. Over the past two years, Skalski has earned 67 solo tackles, five passes defended, and six sacks as a bit of an all-around player for the Clemson front. Expect Skalski to continue being one of Clemson’s key defenders next season.

Skalski clearly led with the crown of his helmet on a hard hit to Justin Fields that caused Fields to leave the field for one play. The linebacker is one of the leaders of the Clemson defense, but for the second consecutive playoff game, he’s been thrown out, as he was also ejected against Alabama in the championship game last year. This is a big loss for a defense that is already trailing 28-14 late in the second quarter.

Skalski (6'0/240) was held out of this past weekend’s win over Syracuse, and no reason was given at the time. Tuesday morning HC Dabo Swinney revealed that the redshirt senior, one of the team’s defensive leaders, will undergo knee surgery with a timeline for recovery being unknown at this time. The Tigers could be down two starting linebackers for Saturday’s game vs. Boston College, as Mike Jones Jr. (undisclosed) is a question mark status-wise.

The reigning ACC champions will be without two defensive starters for Saturday’s matchup with the Orange, and no reason was given for either absence. Skalski (6'0/240) is a key leader on that side of the football for Clemson, while Davis (6'2/300) has been a stalwart in the middle of the defensive line. Clemson has taken to simply releasing a list of inactives this season, and on this week’s list Skalski and Davis are the most noteworthy names.