Jason Priester All Clemson
Tiger Tracker: All Clemson Recruiting Mailbag
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You've got recruiting questions and we have the answers.
Welcome to All Clemson's recruiting mailbag, where we will answer your recruiting questions. Or we will at least attempt to do so, as recruiting is a world with many moving parts and an ever-changing landscape where circumstances can often change in a flash.
With that in mind, let's dive in.
Ken: The Notre Dame game confirms my previous e-mail to you. Losing OL and DL recruits are most important. After ND manhandled Clemson, not getting the 3 top OL prospects (Sullivan Absher, Monroe Freeling, Sam Pendleton) in the Carolinas will hurt in the future. What are the chances will Clemson get more OL. DBs are dime a dozen. Get the road graders.
You are always going to have misses in recruiting. At the end of the day, it's more about the ones you are able to land than the ones you don't get. And yes, Clemson has been less successful in the state of North Carolina in the 2023 cycle, where both Pendleton and Absher reside, than they generally are. I would also say they have made up for that with the more-than-normal success they've had in Georgia.
Clemson has been missing on OL for years, and until they start putting some into the NFL, they are likely going to continue to lose their share of battles at the position, considering the caliber of players they are targeting and the schools they are battling those players for. For example, Notre Dame OL coach Harry Heistand has a long history of developing NFL talent. It shouldn't be all that surprising to see the Tigers lose those kinds of battles.
As for Freeling, yes, he is technically an in-state guy, but he didn't grow up in the state and has no emotional ties to either in-state school. Clemson just got beat by the reigning national champions in that battle and the Dawgs are swinging a mighty big stick on the recruiting trail these days.
However, again, it's about the ones you land and Thomas Austin has put together a stellar class, with three blue-chip prospects in Zechariah Owens, Harris Sewell and Ian Reed. Owens and Sewell are both Top-150 talents and Reed is a Top-250 guy. It's hard to knock those results.
Whether the staff adds another OL to this class is still to be determined. It's possible, but only if they find the right guy and if he's a tackle. Spencer Fano, another blue-chip prospect, has an offer and is set to visit for the South Carolina game and will announce on December 6. The Tigers got in on him late and landing him is probably a longshot, though.
As far as losing out on DL, the staff has really only missed on a couple of late, DL Hunter Osborne and DT Kayden McDonald. Osborne chose Alabama over Clemson and if the Tigers land DE Tomarrion Parker on November 21, I think most would be ecstatic with that trade-off.
McDonald was an oversign, and while it would have absolutely benefitted the program to have landed him, missing on him isn't some devastating hit. Clemson still has Vic Burley, Peter Woods and Stephiylan Green on board at DT, giving the Tigers one of the best DT hauls in this recruiting class.
Mike: Where are they with 2023 DE Tomarrion Parker? And RB? Also any more WRs coming?
Parker is set to announce on November 21 and his last visit to a school not named Clemson was an unofficial one to Tennessee for the Volunteers' win over Alabama. The fact that he never set up an official with the Vols speaks volumes.
Parker is set to return to Clemson for its matchup with Miami, just days ahead of his announcement, It will be an unofficial visit, as he took his official visit for the Syracuse game. He has no other visits scheduled between now and then. The Tigers have been considered the frontrunner for weeks, and I would still have them as the leaders in the clubhouse.
2023 RB Jamrarius Haynes is set to take an official the weekend of the rivalry game against South Carolina. He was an under-the-radar guy until Clemson offered him during an unofficial visit for the Syracuse game. It was his first collegiate offer. Some others have started to show some interest, including Auburn, Washington State, Florida State, Boston College and Vanderbilt, but outside of Washington State, none have actually offered.
As for WR, Clemson already has two on board in Noble Johnson and Ronan Hanafin, and that was the number coming in. It might take someone leaving unexpectedly for the staff to add a third. If they were to target another receiver, one name to know is in-state guy Tyler Brown, who was at one time committed to Minnesota. An offer from Virginia Tech keyed a decommitment, though, as Brown has now opened things back up.
Nicholas: Do you feel as if recruiting has dropped off since Jeff Scott left in 2019? Especially at the WR position.
Jeff Scott is no doubt one of the best recruiters to have ever been a member of Dabo Swinney's staff. Since his departure to take the head coaching job at USF, Clemson has still recruited at a high level since he left, so it's hard to say it has dropped off overall.
Now whether it's dropped off at WR is another thing altogether, but even that is debatable. Joseph Ngata, E.J. Williams and Beaux Collins were all highly-rated prospects. Are they recruiting misses or is it more of a development issue? It's hard to answer that at this point.
Antonio Williams and Adam Randall were both highly-rated recruits, as well. So it's not like the program isn't still attracting talent for the position. That talent has just yet to translate into the kind of production Clemson fans have become accustomed to seeing from a school that prided itself on being 'Wide Receiver U.'
Do you have any recruiting questions that you want to ask? If so, just let us know. Shoot us an email at jp@clemsonmaven.io or shoot us a DM on Twitter.
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