National Signing Day came and went on Wednesday, February 7th. The day did not impact Clemson much as there were no new big commitments to the 2024 class. Over the last few weeks though the Tigers’ staff has been focused on building the 2025 class. So far, Dabo Swinney and his staff have been doing an excellent job locking in more than a few very talented recruits.
Clemson 2025 Class Rankings
Right now, Clemson has a top-five recruiting class in the country for 2025 according to databases such as ESPN, 247 Sports, and ON3. In the ACC the Tigers have the top-ranked class for 2025. There are nine four-star recruits currently committed to Clemson for 2025. Six on the offensive side, and three on defense. There was a clear focus on improving the play and depth up front with five of these four-star commits being offensive and defensive linemen. Three are offensive linemen and two are defensive linemen. Lastly of all nine of these four-stars, five of them are top three players in their respective states. Three of them are ranked first.
Most Recent Key Commits
Clemson held their “Elite Junior Day” for the 2025 class during the last week of January. It was a day where many of their top targets and commits for 2025 visited and spent the day on campus with the team and fellow recruits. Since that day the Tigers have gotten a few key commitments. It started with two four-star offensive linemen Jaylan Beckley and Brayden Jacobs. Two players with great size and physicality. Beckley is 6’4 290 pounds and strikes hard on the snap of the ball. His best attribute is how well he runs his feet through contact on blocks, driving guys well into the second level of the defense.
If he improves his lateral movement and footwork, especially on pass blocks, he will be a key piece upfront for Clemson. Jacobs is 6’5 310 pounds and it is easy to see even on film. Even with his size he moves very well and does a great job reaching the second level. If he plays lower at the snap of the ball, there are not many defenders who are going to want to line up across from him. He is the 16th-ranked offensive lineman in the country and 25th ranked player in the nation.
Not long after Beckley and Jacobs committed, defensive lineman Isiah Campbell decided he wanted to join them in Death Valley. At 6’4 260 pounds Campbell is the 7th-ranked defensive lineman in the nation, and third ranked player in North Carolina. Campbell can play both on the interior and edge of the defensive line based on scheme. He quickly gets off the ball and has strong hands but they are a bit slow. Campbell pays with a high motor though, and doesn’t give up on plays. Improving his hand speed and lateral movement will make him a problem when he gets to the next level.
Other Top Commits
Campbell was not the only big defensive line commit the Tigers got in the 2025 class. Someone Tiger fans should be very excited about is defensive end commit Ari Watford. He is the number one defensive end in the country and the number one player in Virginia. The 6’5 220-pound edge player has tremendous upside. He’s got a long athletic frame that makes it hard for tackles to get their hands on him. He is fast off the ball and moves very well both upfield and laterally. When he gets a deeper set of pass-rush moves he has the potential to be a high-level edge rusher.
Besides Watford, there are two other number-one players committed to the Tigers in 2025. One is another defensive line commit Amare Adams. He is the number-one player in South Carolina. He’s very physical at the point of attack both shedding blocks and making tackles. The other is quarterback Blake Herbert. The 6’3 205 dual-threat quarterback is the number one player in Massachusetts. He’s got a big frame, a big arm, and can use his legs to both move inside the pocket and escape it to make plays. He’ll have to get faster reading through his progressions, but he puts the ball in great spots for his wide receivers.
Lastly, there are a pair of four-star teammates from Virginia’s Liberty Christian Academy committed to Clemson. They are Gideon Davidson, the fifth-ranked running back in the country and third-ranked player in Virginia, and Easton Ware, the 17th-ranked offensive lineman and seventh-ranked player in the state. Davidson is 6’0 195 pounds and shifty out of the backfield. He has great vision helping him make some very good cuts after taking the handoff. Ware is 6’5 280 pounds with quick feet, strong fire off, and is a great finisher on blocks. Davidson will continue following Ware on the field looking for the end zone in Death Valley just as they have in Liberty.
Stock Still Rising
In an age where much of the focus in recruiting tends to be on the transfer portal, Swinney and Clemson stick to the old-school method. High school recruiting and development continue to be the focal point in how Swinney builds his team. Some believe this is the reason the Tigers have struggled to get back to past success. This season though, the 2023 class stepped up big time, especially towards the end of the year. We’ve talked about it before but when Swinney spoke passionately about investing in the Clemson stock, we agreed with him because of the young talent in the program.
Now the 2024 class is on the way in and the talent in it should fill in some of the missing pieces in the program. This 2025 class is stacked with even more talent that can impact the program very early on in their tenure. We will see in the next few years if the stock is in the right place continuing to invest in the younger talent.
