Switching positions later in your career is a daunting item to process.
For Adam Randall, that switch came shortly after the ACC Championship. The confetti was falling in Charlotte, but Clemson had a serious issue on its hands.
The Tigers had punched their ticket to the playoff, but one key position was left rather thin in the win over SMU.
Jay Haynes was deep in the end zone, ready to return a kick to give his offense some field position to stave off a rallying Mustangs squad on fire on a cold Charlotte night.
As he glided down the field, a hit from an SMU special teamer ended the play, and Hayes’ season.
Not only was it apparent that Phil Mafahwas dealing with something serious at the time, but your option to pick up the slack was out of commission for the remainder of the year.
Essentially, Clemson’s top two options at running back were considered either incredibly limited or out of use entirely. The Tigers had options between the two, but with such limited playing time, an idea popped into the staff’s mind.
Enter Randall.
When the idea of him switching positions was thrown his way, there wasn’t any frustration or ill feelings about being shifted to a new spot. Instead, he embraced the idea of that change. If you ask anyone about Randall on the team, much time is spent on his leadership, with Dabo Swinney adding that his new tailback is one of the best leaders on this team.
Randall’s warm embrace of a position change, doing whatever it takes to win for the team’s sake rather than what may be best for him at the time, is emblematic of that core trait.
It also helps when the staff is confident this position change would boost Randall’s chances of reaching the NFL. He recalled conversations with Swinney and C.J. Spiller about how he could shine at tailback, and ultimately reach the pinnacle of the football world.