Where Clemson Stands Ahead of R.J. Hudson's Commitment

Clemson is just a few days away from possibly landing the final linebacker of its 2027 class.

Three-star LB R.J. Hudson has been predicted to land with the Clemson Tigers. He will announce his decision this Friday. | Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers and head coach Dabo Swinney are currently hosting multiple prospects for the program's second official visit slate, and one of the recruits on campus is set to make his decision soon.

That player is edge rusher/linebacker R.J. Hudson, who was offered last week after attending the program's camp. Soon after revealing his offer, he also set up his official visit and announced a commitment date for this upcoming Friday at 4 p.m. EST. Clemson's primary competitor is Maryland, which hosted Hudson for an official visit on the weekend of May 29.

The 6-foot-2, 215-pound hybrid defender is rated a three-star prospect and ranks as the No. 627 overall player, the No. 53 edge rusher and the No. 15 player in the state of Virginia, according to the 247Sports Composite. 

Will be announcing my commitment on June 19th at Varina Highschool 4pm! pic.twitter.com/5Sa6xgZRiA

— Sa Rex (@Sarex6_) June 8, 2026

Initially, Clemson had two linebackers on their board in four-star Roman Igwebuike and four-star Sean Fox. However, they then decided to add another in three-star Tyson Washington, offering the fellow Virginia linebacker at the end of April before setting up an official visit for this weekend. 

At the beginning of June, though, the Tigers and Washington mutually agreed not to host him for any further visits, as the program was looking to go all in on Igwebuike and Fox. 

Interestingly, Clemson then sent out the offer to Hudson just four days later. We still don't know why Hudson was brought in just days after shutting down Washington, but we can tell you that Hudson has been used as a safety net in case the Tigers miss on both priority targets. 

Before receiving an offer from the ACC powerhouse, Hudson originally had an official visit schedule that included Maryland (May 29) and Syracuse (June 12). However, after being given the opportunity to tour Clemson, he scrapped his visit with the Orange in favor of the Tigers. 

Now, that leads us to today. With Clemson essentially out of the picture for Fox, as we reported yesterday, and Igwebuike recently receiving an expert prediction from On3's Mike Singer to land with Notre Dame, it's likely that the final linebacker addition of the Tigers' 2027 class will be Hudson, as he earned an expert prediction from On3's Chad Simmons this morning.

If Hudson does decide to commit to Clemson ultimately, he'll join a linebacker class that already includes four-star Bryce Kish and three-star Max Brown, who is the younger brother of All-ACC linebacker Sammy Brown.