Tre Lamar is finally healthy and ready to wreak havoc on opposing offenses

Lamar recovers a fumble against FSU last November

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Thu Aug 16 07:01:02 GMT-04:00 2018

CLEMSON – A healthy Tre Lamar is ready to pick up where he left off.

Lamar was in the process of putting together a stellar campaign in 2017 when Florida St. rolled into town in early November. Lamar burst through the middle of the Seminole line and buried quarterback James Blackman in the Death Valley turf.

The ball popped loose and the Tigers recovered, a big play in Clemson’s 31-14 victory. Lamar was hurt on the play, however, and missed the rest of the season.

“It wasn't a good end for me. Not the way I wanted to end my season,” Lamar told TigerNet after Monday’s practice. “But I feel like it has given us some great depth going into this season. I think JD (Davis) and Jamie (Skalski), even though he hasn't played much, have had great meaningful snaps. It makes our linebacker corps and our defense as a whole that much better.

“I really did want to play. But they kept me out, which was a good decision because you don't want things like that to come back and bite you just because you feel like you're ready but you’re really not. So I have no hard feelings."

Lamar said it was an injury that lingered.

“It was a stinger that was a little prolonged because the nerve was damaged,” he said. “I had no movement in my arm for a while, so it took some time to get back. Spring is when I knew (he was 100 percent). But I've been hitting hard and everything feels great.”

Lamar said a healthy linebacker group will be one of the strengths of the Clemson defense this season.

“It's crazy. Everybody has had snaps, meaningful snaps,” Lamar said. “And that means a lot going into practice and into the games. It means that everybody knows what it is like to be out there and has proven that they can be out there. It is intense every day but iron sharpen iron.”

The coaches wanted Lamar to work on his pass defense over the spring and summer, and he’s taken that film work into his work on the field.

“I feel like in the run game I'm pretty strong in terms of knowing where to be, but in the pass game I haven't had as much experience in that area,” Lamar said. “I feel like that's what they've wanted me to improve the most. I would say reps have helped me the most. At least for me, I like to feel things out on the field by myself. There's only so much you can watch before you can do. I feel like just seeing the routes and feeling them and going over the motions helps me the most."

On Mike Jones

"I think he will be a great player. He’s very athletic. Has a big frame to him, so I think he'll fill out really nicely over the coming years. I think he is going to be a good player for us.

On Babylon Spector

"He can play multiple positions. Obviously, we've got a lot of depth now, but he's literally working every position. He's got a great football IQ and he’s athletic as well.”

On Jake Venables

"You can tell he's got that Venables blood in him. Him and Dad were mad out there. Jake plays hard and is physical. Is like coach V in that he's aggressive and passionate about what they do."

On Shaq Smith’s improvement

"I think mentally. He has all the tools physically, strength and speed. I think mentally he's become more of a field general out there and knowing exactly where he needs to be and when he needs to be there."