Clemson Tigers Come Up Short in Pursuit of Nation’s Top Interior Offensive Lineman

A late push wasn’t enough as an elite five-star target trims his list, leaving Clemson on the outside looking in.

Clemson misses out as an elite five-star offensive lineman narrows his recruitment to four national contenders. | Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images

Shortly after landing in four-star cornerback Bryce Williams’ top six finalists, the Clemson Tigers have unfortunately missed out on their highest-rated target, and one of the best overall players in the 2027 class.

That player is Maxwell Hiller, who announced his four finalists on Saturday afternoon, leaving the Tigers out and dumbing his list down to Ohio State, Alabama, Florida and Tennessee, as first reported by On3’s Hayes Fawcett.

He has official visits scheduled with three of the four programs, beginning with Alabama from May 29-31, followed by Tennessee on June 12-14, and Florida from June 19-21. An official visit to Ohio State has yet to be determined.

NEWS: Five-Star IOL Maxwell Hiller is down to 4 Schools, he tells me for @Rivals⁰⁰The 6’6 305 IOL from Coatesville, PA is ranked as the No. 1 IOL in the 2027 Class

Where Should He Go?⁰⁰https://t.co/CoftALX7wq pic.twitter.com/tgFOiudzAx

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) February 7, 2026

The 300-pound, versatile offensive lineman is rated a five-star prospect and is one of the best players in the country, ranking as the No. 4 overall player, the No. 1 interior offensive lineman and the No. 1 player in the state of Pennsylvania, according to 247Sports rankings.

The Tigers came to Hiller relatively late in the recruiting process, extending an offer in June of last year, when he had already accumulated nearly 30 offers. Clemson’s offer came the day after he took an unofficial visit to the program; however, that was the only time he visited.

Since early 2024, he’s taken a whopping 37 unofficial visits, with nearly a quarter of those being Penn State, as he visited his home-state school 13 times in the past two years. Other schools that hosted the elite offensive lineman for multiple visits include Florida (2), Missouri (2), Tennessee (3), Alabama (3), South Carolina (4) and Maryland (6).

As of now, On3’s Steve Wiltfong predicts Hiller to land with the Crimson Tide, setting his prediction back in early November 2025.

While missing on Hiller hurts, Clemson offensive line coach Matt Luke has been excelling as a recruiter since joining the program ahead of the 2024 season. In the past two years, Luke has recruited 11 offensive linemen and finished as a top-10 offensive lineman recruiter in back-to-back recruiting cycles. Additionally, he finished 2025 as the ACC's best recruiter.

The offensive line was certainly a priority in the transfer portal for Clemson; however, the program missed on every player they offered or contacted. Nevertheless, the rotation up front has tons of potential with high-upside players like Chance Barclay, Grant Wise, Carter Scruggs, and more joining the program ahead of next season.

Not to mention former 6-foot-7, 355-pound offensive tackle Brayden Jacobs excelled as a true freshman this past season, playing nearly 400 snaps at left tackle and left guard while allowing just two sacks and eight pressures.