Update on 5-star Tyreke Johnson of Jacksonville (Fla.), the nation's No. 1 safety.
In Q&A form for expediency:
Q: How was the visit to Clemson?
A: "I loved it. It was a very good family atmosphere and definitely a place where I can see myself playing."
Q: What was it like being there with so many other highly-ranked guys?
A: "It was cool. I know most of those guys from camps or growing up and coming through the recruiting process together. It was cool to hang out with them and see what they had to say. That’s a place where we could team up and that would be a lot of good players all coming in together."
Q: Clemson came into the picture later than some others, what made them a priority for an official?
A: "I did my research on Coach Reed and found out he’s a great coach. And when I found out they had Coach Venables and I looked at his resume I saw it was a school that I needed to check out. I wasn’t really worried about Clemson but I looked into and gave it a shot and I was impressed."
Q: What are your thoughts on Coach Reed?
A: "He’s a cool dude, he’s kinda young and it’s one of those things where it’s a guy you can relate to. He tells you things up front. He’s a very cool and honest and he cares about his guys."
Q: What did they tell you about your fit in the defense? Would you play corner or safety?
A: "I love playing corner, I feel like that’s my spot. But they want me to be there and play all five positions in the secondary; corner, safety, nickel. They said 'we want to make you as versatile as possible because want the NFL to see you as versatile. Because if you have that versatility it makes you a more valuable member of the team and helps your stock for the next level."
Q: Are you familiar with any of the current defensive backs?
A: "I've known Trayvon for a while, that's my guy. We used to go against each other in 7-on-7. I know A.J. Terrell, too. It's good to see both of them getting time as underclassmen and it shows me that the best guys are going to play, no matter how old they are. They want to win and they are going to put the best guys on the field."
Q: Anything else that really caught your eye?
A: "It was just cool to see facilities. They told me they’re going to be in the playoffs every year I'm in college and they're going to keep going after greatness."
Q: What's next on your schedule?
A: "Nothing. I’m done with visits. I don’t have time to play around and waste people’s money. I’ll probably announce in the next 2-3 weeks."
Q: Thoughts on Jim Mora's firing at UCLA and how it might impact your decision?
A: "I was sad to see it. I love Coach Mora, he’s a good guy with great heart. It's tough to see him go. He wasn’t producing like they wanted him to. But he didn’t just build a team, he built a family there so it’s tough to see the players lose such a great guy. It’s life. It’s college football. It's a business and that's part of it. As long as Coach Martin is there that's not going to change anything for me."
In Q&A form for expediency:
Q: How was the visit to Clemson?
A: "I loved it. It was a very good family atmosphere and definitely a place where I can see myself playing."
Q: What was it like being there with so many other highly-ranked guys?
A: "It was cool. I know most of those guys from camps or growing up and coming through the recruiting process together. It was cool to hang out with them and see what they had to say. That’s a place where we could team up and that would be a lot of good players all coming in together."
Q: Clemson came into the picture later than some others, what made them a priority for an official?
A: "I did my research on Coach Reed and found out he’s a great coach. And when I found out they had Coach Venables and I looked at his resume I saw it was a school that I needed to check out. I wasn’t really worried about Clemson but I looked into and gave it a shot and I was impressed."
Q: What are your thoughts on Coach Reed?
A: "He’s a cool dude, he’s kinda young and it’s one of those things where it’s a guy you can relate to. He tells you things up front. He’s a very cool and honest and he cares about his guys."
Q: What did they tell you about your fit in the defense? Would you play corner or safety?
A: "I love playing corner, I feel like that’s my spot. But they want me to be there and play all five positions in the secondary; corner, safety, nickel. They said 'we want to make you as versatile as possible because want the NFL to see you as versatile. Because if you have that versatility it makes you a more valuable member of the team and helps your stock for the next level."
Q: Are you familiar with any of the current defensive backs?
A: "I've known Trayvon for a while, that's my guy. We used to go against each other in 7-on-7. I know A.J. Terrell, too. It's good to see both of them getting time as underclassmen and it shows me that the best guys are going to play, no matter how old they are. They want to win and they are going to put the best guys on the field."
Q: Anything else that really caught your eye?
A: "It was just cool to see facilities. They told me they’re going to be in the playoffs every year I'm in college and they're going to keep going after greatness."
Q: What's next on your schedule?
A: "Nothing. I’m done with visits. I don’t have time to play around and waste people’s money. I’ll probably announce in the next 2-3 weeks."
Q: Thoughts on Jim Mora's firing at UCLA and how it might impact your decision?
A: "I was sad to see it. I love Coach Mora, he’s a good guy with great heart. It's tough to see him go. He wasn’t producing like they wanted him to. But he didn’t just build a team, he built a family there so it’s tough to see the players lose such a great guy. It’s life. It’s college football. It's a business and that's part of it. As long as Coach Martin is there that's not going to change anything for me."
