Opportunity to Join Football Team was 'Bigger Than Myself,' Clemson TE Says

While he is yet to play a down of college football, Schiefflin has some experience on the gridiron from playing at Grayson High School, a powerhouse 6A football program in Georgia. 

As somebody who has spent nearly half a decade on campus, Schieffelin acknowledged that his familiar sense of comfort with the university helped make it an easy decision once Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney came calling.

“The opportunity to come back and impact this area even more was huge. Just being able to be here, it really is family. Clemson is family,” Schieffelin said. “The opportunity was way bigger than myself. To be back in the community and inspire other people. It's amazing to do it at a place I've already given my all to.”

While he may not have been viewed as a top prospect in the 2025 NBA draft, Schiefflin was no slouch on the basketball court. Last season, he was the ACC’s third-leading rebounder (9.4 rebounds per game) while also averaging a career-high 12.4 points.

In 2024, he was named the ACC’s Most Improved Player after helping the Tigers reach their first Elite Eight in over 40 years. After which, he even attended an NBA pre-draft camp and had some productive conversations with NBA scouts but ultimately decided to give football another shot.

“I went to the Portsmouth Invitational. Had some good meetings with NBA teams and they brought up trajectories and where I can be in four or five years,” Schieffelin said. “I prayed on it and I went with my gut and decided on joining the football team.”

This isn’t the first time that the 6-foot-7, 260-pound tight end has strapped up, but the physical demands of ACC football are quite different from playing at the high school level. Schieffelin admits that the extra contact will require some acclimation, but he knows that he possesses the frame to eventually use his size to his advantage.

“It's physical. It's a little different than basketball. I was a physical player in basketball, but here every player plays like I did in basketball,” said Schiefflin. “Its something that I have to get used to, and I have to use my body because im still a big dude out there.” 

While the physicality of college football would be a difficult adjustment for anybody that has spent several years away from the game, the Georgia native explained that his toughest hurdle is having to learn the intricacies of the sport in such a short time.

“The hardest adjustment is getting out there and learning from ground zero again. It's kind of like coming in as a freshman,” he said. “The only difference is that at 22-years-old, I know what to expect. This journey is going to have a lot of adversity and I'm willing to take on all of it.”

While he may be following an unorthodox path, it’s not an unprecedented one. Last weekend, Antonio Gates became the first player to be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame without playing a down of college football. Besides Gates, players like Jimmy Graham, Julius Thomas and Mo Alie-Cox, who Schieffelin has built a relationship with, have paved the way for former basketball players looking to change sports. 

“When I made the decision, I was talking to Mo Alie-Cox a little bit. He was one of the first people I reached out to because we kind of had a similar story,” Schieffelin said. “He decided he would have a longer career in football and make more money. I saw myself in the same shoes as him.”

Whether Schieffelin goes on to be a college football star, or simply provides some extra depth at the position, his ambitious journey to the football field is already an inspiring story.

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