Dabo Swinney provides update on placekicker battle, approach to competition

There’s a heated position battle going on at the Clemson Tigers fall camp. Head coach Dabo Swinney wants to ensure that his Tigers have the edge in every possible aspect in 2024; so placekicker is a battle of great notoriety for Clemson heading into the season.

The battle for the right to handle the Tigers’ kicking responsibilities is down to two — Nolan Hauser and Robert Gunn III. Recently, the national championship-winning Clemson head coach provided an update on the battle, revealing who is in pole position for the starting spot.

“I’d say Hauser’s a little bit ahead right now,” said Swinney. “They kind of go back and forth. Robert was up the first couple of days. And whoever’s up after each practice, that’s who goes out there first. So they’re just competing, you know. They were kind of right there together, and then I think Hauser went out there first today, and I think he finished first. So we’ll see how it is. We’re going to let them compete and we’ll let it all work itself out. But both of them [are] battling hard.”

Gunn is the veteran of the two individuals and has a bit of experience at the collegiate level. The red-shirt sophomore placekicker has played in a total of 16 games in his first two years at Clemson. Last year, he connected on 14 of his 15 PAT attempts but unfortunately went 1-4 on field goals, connecting on just a 23-yarder last season. Gunn does have an impressive touchback percentage on kickoffs. Of his 78 career kickoffs he has attempted, 67 (85.9%) were not returned.

Hauser, on the other hand, is a true freshman who walked on to campus rated the nation’s number one kicker in the 2024 recruiting class, according to On3 Industry Ranking. And so far, the true freshman has been giving his red-shirt sophomore counterpart a run for his money in fall camp.

It’s still anyone’s race, according to Swinney. Both placekickers have performed well during fall camp. However, it appears as if, if the season were to start today, Hauser would likely have the nod as Clemson starting placekicker.