Clemson senior defensive lineman 'leaning' towards returning to school

Clemson senior defensive end KJ Henry hasn’t made a final decision on his future yet, but Henry told reporters in Miami ahead of the Orange Bowl that he is “leaning” towards returning to school, according to Jon Blau of The Post and Courier.

The North Carolina native started all 13 games for the Tigers this season, finishing with 56 tackles, 9 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks.

“I don’t see why I have to leave now,” Henry said. “Everybody’s always telling us, ‘You’re in a great time in your life. Why rush it? The grass isn’t always greener’. I’m listening. I’m having a great time. Why do I have to leave?”

Henry signed with Clemson as a five-star recruit for the class of 2018 and redshirted his freshman season.

He has been a key contributor each of the past four years and has one season of eligibility remaining due to everyone getting a COVID-19 year from the NCAA.

Henry earned second-team All-ACC honors this season and was named a permanent team captain.

As a junior in 2021, he recorded 28 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks.

The 6-foot-4, 255 pound defender added that while he has not made a final decision yet, he is trying to get some of his teammates to return to Clemson with him.

“It’s been fun seeing some of the guys around me and just knowing that there’s a great group coming back and I could be a part of that,” KJ Henry said. “I’ve been elbowing some of these guys around here, and I know coach Swinney’s been teasing y’all. We’ve got some decisions to make.”

Fellow defensive linemen Tyler Davis, Ruke Orhorhoro and Bryan Bresee are among the players Henry is trying to convince to return to school.

Those three have all said that they are unsure about their futures.

Henry is even working on offensive tackle Jordan McFadden, who said Tuesday that he is planning to turn pro.

“If everybody on offense were to swing this thing back and a lot of the guys that were supposed to go out on the defense were to come back, it could be a very special year next year. So we’ll see,” Henry said.

“TD was first-team All-ACC and an All-American. He’s probably got his clothes packed and out the door. If TD come back then that leaves all the options open. … J Mac says he’s gone, but J Mac ain’t talked to me yet. But we’ll see.”

The group has at least one game left together as the Tigers face Tennessee in the Orange Bowl on Friday. After that, several decisions need to be made.

“It’s just fun. It’s a fun group of guys to be around,” Henry said. “So if we spend another year at Clemson all together, it would not be the worst thing in the world.”