Two months ago, Clemson Tigers’ redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Hevin Brown-Shuler announced that he was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma after a mass was discovered in his chest. With the announcement came his decision to miss the entire 2026 football season for treatment. Now, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney has given an update on his recovery following several rounds of chemotherapy.

“All the guys that we expect to be there, they’re all trending in a new direction as far as camp, being ready to go in camp,” Swinney told reporters on July 14. “Obviously, y’all know about Hevin and his situation; just an update on him, he’s doing great. He’s had four rounds of chemo at this point and is responding well and doing well. So, that’s going in a good direction. He’s been very engaged and just around every day. And so, it’s been good to see him, and [he] got a smile on his face.”

During offseason workouts, Brown-Shuler had a visit to the emergency room in late April with an illness that started as a cough. Initially, he thought it was the common cold, but it worsened when he developed severe chest pain that affected his workouts. Eventually, the discovery that came out of that visit was that he had Hodgkin lymphoma, a blood cancer that affects the lymphatic system.

In his first media appearance after the diagnosis in May, Brown-Shuler discussed how the whole thing happened and how much progress he was making. He shared the timeline for his recovery.

“I’m just blessed to have the support of my coaches and teammates,” Brown-Shuler said to the media in May. “Blessed to be here today, just to put a face to a name, and let everybody know that I am OK, and that I will be back next season. Come back with a vengeance next season to do what I was recruited to do, and that’s play football.”

Swinney was with him during his media appearance, where he shared how devastating the news was. There were big plans for Brown-Shuler in the coming season after his redshirt freshman year, when he began getting some minutes and appeared in the bowl game. The four-star athlete from Pace Academy was an All-American coming out of high school.

Regardless, Swinney and the athlete did not let the news deter them. Instead, they have been optimistic after getting positive news from doctors regarding his recovery. He began working out as early as May, but only lightly, as he is not fit enough to meet the grueling demands of football just yet. Swinney noted that Brown-Shuler began chemotherapy in May and is continuing the procedures for about six months.

To support his journey, his mother, Meek, temporarily closed her Atlanta-based nail salon to remain by his side. Brown-Shuler has also found community support from former South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia, who was recently diagnosed with Stage 4 colorectal cancer.

Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, Hevin attended the prestigious Pace Academy and was rated as a four-star prospect and a top-150 national recruit in the 2024 cycle. Rivals had listed him as the No. 6 defensive tackle in the entire country. He committed to Clemson on April 22, 2023, choosing Dabo Swinney’s program over a highly competitive list of offers that included Georgia, Ohio State, and Oklahoma.

After redshirting his true freshman year in 2024, Hevin logged 57 defensive snaps across three games in 2025, highlighted by a massive goal-line disruption against Penn State that forced a tackle for loss. He had entered 2026 heavily projected to break into the main two-deep defensive line rotation before his diagnosis halted his sophomore campaign.

Brown-Shuler intends to fully recover and return to the field for the 2027 football season. Clemson also reportedly plans to apply for a medical redshirt to preserve his three remaining years of NCAA eligibility.