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College football 2018 preview: 15 freshmen poised to make instant impact

By Cody Williams

PACIFIC PALISADES, CA - MAY 26: Trevor Lawrence of Clemson University poses for portraits at Steve Clarkson's 14th Annual Quarterback Retreat on May 26, 2018 in Pacific Palisades, California. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)
PACIFIC PALISADES, CA - MAY 26: Trevor Lawrence of Clemson University poses for portraits at Steve Clarkson's 14th Annual Quarterback Retreat on May 26, 2018 in Pacific Palisades, California. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images) /
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CLEMSON, SC – APRIL 14: Trevor Lawrence (16) looks to throw a pass during action in the Clemson Spring Football game at Clemson Memorial Stadium on April 14, 2018 in Clemson, SC..(Photo by John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

10. Trevor Lawrence, QB, Clemson

Aside from their shocking upset at the hands of Syracuse in the middle of the year last season, the Clemson Tigers certainly appeared to be primed to make another run at a title. After all, the loss to the Orange was the only blemish on their record, they had one of the most destructive defenses in all of college football and their offense appeared to have a lot of potential.

When it came down to crunch time and the College Football Playoff though, things started to unravel for the Tigers. Quarterback Kelly Bryant looked like he was out of his depth in a big way and it seemed like the offense wasn’t going to be able to do anything of substance against a defense the quality of Alabama’s with Bryant at quarterback. Enter Trevor Lawrence.

Lawrence enters the 2018 season as the No. 1 overall recruit in the country and with everything that you could possibly want from a player at the position. He checks boxes for size, arm strength, athletic tools and anything else that you could hope to get from a signal-caller, especially at his age. And what’s more, it’s not all for show, which Lawrence put on display as one of the biggest stars of Clemson’s spring game.

Given that Dabo Swinney’s team could again be hunting for hardware this season, they are going to want the quarterback that gives them the best chance to be the best on the field — that’s Lawrence, not Bryant. As such, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the freshman start more games in 2018 than the incumbent starter.