Why did Clemson struggle recruiting the state of SC? Dabo explains

All in all, Clemson football’s 2024 signing class was a win.

The Tigers went into Georgia and landed five-star linebacker recruit Sammy Brown over Kirby Smart and UGA; pulled in an uber-talented wide receiver from Texas in five-star Bryant Wesco; and finished December ranked No. 12 nationally in the 247Sports Composite team rankings.

But Clemson also came up short in a major category this cycle — one glaring enough that Brian Dohn, a national recruiting analyst for 247Sports, brought it up unprompted on a media conference call a week before the early signing period.

“There’s no other way to put it,” he said. “They have to get better in-state.”

Sure enough, amid another successful recruiting year, Clemson’s in-state productivity hit a historic low. The Tigers signed 22 scholarship players for 2024 but only one from the state of South Carolina: three-star offensive lineman Watson Young from nearby Daniel High School.

According to the team’s media guide, it’s only the second time in the last 52 years Clemson has signed a single scholarship recruit from South Carolina in a class.

Dating back to 1972, the year freshman eligibility began, Clemson’s only other signing class with one in-state recruit came in 2021. That year, three-star Dutch Fork High School athlete Will Taylor was the lone S.C. player to get a Clemson offer in a loaded class that ranked No. 5.

The 2024 cycle was a different story as the Tigers lost three separate recruiting battles for high-profile in-state offensive linemen to their biggest rival, South Carolina, before the summer and had zero in-state commitments for the class until Young — whose father played center at Clemson — flipped from App State three weeks before signing day.

“It hasn’t been a good year for them in state,” Dohn said. “They just have to do a better job recruiting some of the top kids and getting commitments from them.”

So, what’s the deal?

Dabo explains recruiting strategy

Addressing the discrepancy in his Dec. 20 early signing day news conference, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said there are “really good football players” across the state of South Carolina but recruiting them can be a little tricky.

Population, for one, plays a role. South Carolina had an estimated census population of 5.37 million people last year. The Atlanta metro area has 5.16 million alone.

“And then you’re looking for guys that are good enough at Clemson,” Swinney said. “And then it’s academics. It’s fit. It’s all those things. So it’s a very small number for us.”

Having lived and coached in South Carolina for 21 years now, Swinney also recognizes how rivalry allegiances can play a critical role in recruitments. Namely: Did a recruit grow up in a family of USC or Clemson fans?

“There’s just some kids that they grow up pulling for the other team,” he said. “That’s just the way it is. And it’s hard to overcome that. So we work hard at it. We take a shot. And some of the guys that we offered — several — we just didn’t get them.”

That’s a tip of the hat to coach Shane Beamer and the USC football program, which not only beat out Clemson and various other Power Five suitors for three in-state offensive linemen, but perhaps even more impressively in this day and age, held onto them after a 5-7 season.

Josiah Thompson of Dillon (No. 28 nationally in the 247Sports composite), Kam Pringle of Woodland (No. 169) and Blake Franks of Greenville (No. 486) all felt the pull to Columbia and, despite Clemson offers and visits, verbally committed to USC before summer 2023.

Clemson had a more understandable numbers crunch at wide receiver, where they earned commitments from Wesco (No. 21) and T.J. Moore (No. 89) on the heels of their marquee summer official visit weekend for 2024 recruits.

As a result, communications fizzled with Braylon Staley of Strom Thurmond, previously projected as a Clemson lean. He committed to Tennessee.

The Tigers had a flurry of high-profile summer commitments and finished the cycle with a top 15 recruiting class (per at least one major service) for the 14th straight year. But a lack of in-state action made for some interesting visuals within 247Sports’ player rankings for South Carolina.

For 2024, USC signed four of the top five composite recruits in the state for a second straight cycle. UCF, West Virginia, Coastal Carolina, ECU and Boston College were among 13 other schools who signed a player from the state ranking higher than Clemson’s Young (No. 21).

And the Tigers — one of only two Power Five schools in the state and one of the more recognizable brands of the College Football Playoff era — ended with as many scholarship signees from South Carolina (one) as ... UConn.

And Northern Illinois.

And Miami of Ohio.

“Just one of those years,” Swinney said.

A trend or a one-off?

Ever the optimist, Clemson’s coach emphasized he was “pumped” about the addition of Young, a 2023 S.C. Mr. Football Award finalist and fourth-generation Clemson football player from Daniel who’ll add depth and developmental potential to the offensive line group.

Naturally, Swinney can also point to Clemson’s national recruiting success: How the Tigers, during a long run of ACC and CFP success, have routinely convinced top players from across the United States (Texas, California, Massachusetts) to play their ball in the Upstate. And earned the right to be selective in who they do and don’t pursue in their home state.

Still, Clemson’s in-state struggles haven’t gone unnoticed.

Though it wasn’t the deciding factor, former offensive line coach Thomas Austin’s lack of success with regional recruits reportedly played a part in Swinney’s decision to fire him after two seasons Nov. 30 and replace him with Matt Luke.

Austin, Clemson’s offensive line coach of two seasons, couldn’t sway Thompson, Pringle or Franks to Clemson in the Class of 2024.

The Tigers also missed on both of the in-state offensive linemen they offered in the Class of 2023, as five-star Monroe Freeling of Oceanside Collegiate signed with Georgia and four-star Markee Anderson of Dorman chose USC.

Luke, a former offensive line coach at Georgia and head coach at Ole Miss, doesn’t have an in-state target of that level yet in the 2025 class, though he’s made quick progress with five-star Providence Day (NC) offensive tackle David Sanders since being hired Dec. 4.

Clemson’s 2025 recruiting class is also off to an excellent start close to home — the Tigers picked up commitments from four of the top recruits in the state.

Four-star South Florence defensive lineman Amare Adams and three-star Belton-Honea Path athlete Marquise Henderson (who could play offense or defense) pledged last month.

If rankings hold, Adams would be the first No. 1 recruit from South Carolina to choose Clemson in three cycles since Mauldin cornerback Jeadyn Lukus in 2022 and fourth in the past 10 cycles.

“I think we’re off to a great start in our ’25 class,” Swinney said. “So a lot of momentum in that group as well.”

It’s the sort of commitment Dohn, the 247Sports analyst, sees as necessary for any college football team — Clemson or otherwise.

“I don’t care if you’re a national program or not,” he said. “If you don’t take care of your backyard, it’s gonna be tough.”