Vic Beasley's decision to return to Clemson for his senior season as one of the nation's top pass rushers will come with two kinds of attention. The good kind for Beasley is that NFL scouts will have a chance to see the improvements he's made on the second-round draft grade he received after his junior year.
The kind that will make life tough, according to his position coach, is the kind he'll draw from opposing offenses. Marion Hobby sees Beasley commanding double teams this fall.
"People are going to double-team Vic, and he's going to have to deal with that," Hobby said, according to athlonsports.com. "Vic knows what he's going to face, and he's a guy with a lot of pride. ... He's going to have to deal with the attention, and know that when people double him, then that's going to leave somebody else open. We have to do a great job of film study and try to take guys off-guard."
Beasley delivered 13 sacks for 98 yards in losses last year for the Tigers, a total that ranked third in the nation behind NFL draft picks Marcus Smith and Trent Murphy. And with Clemson's other defensive end, Corey Crawford, suspended for the season-opener against Georgia, the Bulldogs will have that much more freedom to hold Beasley down with extra blocking help.
Beasley (6-2, 235 pounds) is undersized to play end in the NFL, and scouting questions about his pro potential are more likely to be about his ability to stop the run than bring pressure against the pass.
Fortunately for Beasley, the double-teaming he'll face in his final year at Clemson will come primarily on passing plays.
But where his draft status is concerned, stout run defense will be just as important.
*Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter **@ChaseGoodbread.*
