Recruiting: USC and Clemson named 'big winners of first June official visit weekend'
The first official visit weekend for 2024 football prospects is in the books and according to SBLive's Director of Recruiting Andrew Nemec, two programs were big winners: USC and Clemson.
Nemec breaks down both schools' recruiting wins below.
Nemec on USC:
Clemson may have landed the marquee names this weekend, but from a volume standpoint USC added the most pledges. Five, including the top two in their class (so far). USC's most significant addition of the weekend, Serra four-star cornerback Dakoda Fields, may not be the highest-rated of the bunch, but he carries added weight. The nation's No. 10 cornerback was believed to be an Oregon lean. In the head-to-head battles between Dan Lanning and Lincoln Riley for top defensive prospects thus far, it has been the Ducks who have come out on top. Booker T. Washington (Georgia) four-star edge-rusher Kameryn Fountain is the headliner of USC's big weekend. Central Catholic (California) four-star offensive tackle Manasse Itete is still relatively new to football, having come to America from the Democratic Republic of Congo a few years ago. Still, he's impressed enough to be rated the nation's No. 12 offensive tackle and has accrued offers from Auburn, Florida State, Miami, Oregon, UCLA, Utah, Washington and others. As if that weren't enough, USC added Clearwater (Florida) four-star safety Jarvis Boatwright, who held more than 30 offers, and Cheery Creek (Colorado) three-star offensive lineman Hayden Treter.
Nemec on Clemson:
Clemson landed three commitments, but two of them were among the best players in America. Jefferson (Georgia) five-star prospect Sammy Brown, the nation's No. 5 overall prospect and No. 1 linebacker, entered the weekend with a top five that also included Georgia, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Tennessee. His commitment was one of the biggest recruiting wins of the 2024 recruiting cycle thus far. Clemson followed up that five-star pledge with another massive recruiting win, securing the commitment of Midlothian (Texas) five-star wide receiver Bryant Wesco, the nation's No. 9 overall prospect. Rounding out the weekend was the addition of Tampa Catholic (Florida) four-star wide receiver T.J. Moore, the nation's No. 84 overall prospect and No. 15 wide receiver.