Yeargin next in line at BC
Joins ACC rival from Clemson
There are second acts in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Boston College graduate transfer defensive end Richard Yeargin is in the process of regenerating a oncepromising college football career that was blitzed by unforeseen circumstances.
Yeargin was a high school All-American from Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., who went straight to the top of the ACC food chain when he enrolled at Clemson in 2015. Yeargin played in 10 games as a freshman, 12 as a sophomore and was positioned for a breakout year when tragedy interrupted his trajectory.
Yeargin was hospitalized with neck and spinal injuries from a rollover accident in June 2017.
“It was pretty bad,” Yeargin said during yesterday’s media day gathering at Conte Forum. “I was trying to opt out of having surgery because it limits your ability to come back and play once you have surgery.
“I went through that process for a year and still had nerve issues and things going on. So, I decided to shut it down and have the surgery. That worked out to the point where it transitioned into another opportunity.”
While Yeargin was undergoing convalescence, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney put together what experts consider the finest defensive front in college football history.
The Tigers’ foursome featured Clelin Farrell and Austin Bryant on the edge, and Dexter Lawrence and Christian Wilkins of Springfield at tackle.
Yeargin was a spectator last January when Clemson captured its second FBS championship in three seasons with a 44-16 victory over Alabama. Despite being out of uniform, Yeargin added what he could to the Clemson cause.
“Helping those guys develop and sitting with them daily breaking down film and keeping those relationships going and keeping the energy going,” Yeargin said.
“They were supporting me in my journey back to football. Those guys were great and just being around them during that process gave me something to strive for. It was a healthy situation to be in.”
Yeargin made proper use of his downtime, earning a bachelors’ degree in sports communications in 2017 and a master’s in athletic leadership last May.
But it took courage and commitment for Yeargin to rekindle his football fire at one of the northern outposts of the ACC. Yeargin is one of five graduate transfers Eagles coach Steve Addazio brought in to replenish his depleted roster.
“I think Rich is an exciting story and we are going to see how it goes,” Addazio said. “He is coming off a tough injury but he’s a wonderful kid and a really mature, bright guy who really wants to get his playing career going again.
“He has done a lot to put himself in a position to make a comeback here and we are going to take care of him. He has played a lot of football and we’ll take this as a slow process to get him back physically and mentally.”
Yeargin’s arrival at the Heights coincided with two immediate vacancies at his position. Defensive ends Zach Allen and Wyatt Ray graduated, leaving BC’s defense minus 105 tackles, 26.5 tackles for a loss and 15.5 sacks.
The top four edge rushers in training camp are Yeargin, redshirt freshman Joey Luchetti, redshirt junior Brandon Barlow and redshirt sophomore Marcus Valdez.
Regardless Yeargin will have a role, either as a starter or backup, Oct. 26 when BC travels to Clemson to engage the Tigers in Memorial Stadium, a destination known throughout college football at Death Valley.
“I would be lying if I said it wasn’t going to be weird,” Yeargin said. “I think the greatest focus for me is to go in there with the mindset that I am going to respect the program I left and I did not leave on bad terms.
“It will be like a homecoming with me in a different colored jersey.”