****** Farrell: Clemson's top athlete commits of the Rivals.com era
- Thread starter Cris_Ard
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Pretty crazy that Vic Beasley was not ranked high enough to make this list. Wasn't he classified as an ATH?
It's difficult to evaluate a 'tweener,' or a prospect who at that particular time appears to be a tweener. It took Clemson's staff three years to figure out where Beasley was going to play after he got work at tight end and linebacker.
Not making an excuse. I'm merely saying rankings are all about projections based on the tools a prospect has. You're not necessarily saying a kid will throw for x-amount of yards or make x-amount of tackles. You can't predict human performance. You're basically evaluating his tools and saying he has the capability to have an impact on the next level. With a tweener, you don't really know how he's going to respond to a situation until you put him there. And then you've got to evaluate where his passion is, because that's where he's going to excel.
Tye Hill rushed for 100 yards in a game and could have been a very good back, but he was never going to be a first-rounder at RB like he ultimately became after working as a corner for much of his career.
From a force to a pile inspector.... Kearse coulda been a monster is his own right
I'll never forgive him. Harsh as it sounds, I'm holding a grudge.
Kearse played safety at Clemson, totaling 164 tackles and seven interceptions in three seasons before declaring for the 2016 NFL Draft. He was selected in the seventh round by Minnesota and saw limited playing time as a rookie. He will be battling for a roster spot this summer.
Still salty about how he ended his time here. That North Carolina gif tells you what you need to know.
Still salty about how he ended his time here. That North Carolina gif tells you what you need to know.
Still salty we decided to stop recruiting Gurley for a solid stretch of time after Brooks committed.
Didn't know Rendrick Taylor was strength coach at State, good for him. Hope he's a good coach and gets to work in Daboland someday.
Yup--saw him on sideline when we played them this year. We have another former player who was a S&C GA at Missouri last year. He's now director of Olympic sports at New Mexico St. His name is Akeem Robinson (you may remember him).
http://nmstatesports.com/staff.aspx?staff=236
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Got a question, You said it perfectly that you can't really predict human performance. Since you have been doing this a long time who are the 2-3 "can't miss prospects" that you have been shocked didn't pan out on the field do to their performance. I know kids sometimes never pan out because of off the field issues. I was just wondering about kids that just never performed to their potential (tools).
So well stated here. And this is why I personally feel it makes a MASSIVE amount of difference "where" a kid lands oftentimes regardless of their talent level. Just b/c a kid is an elite talent or a talented kid without a position, it doesn't mean they can just go anywhere and end up with the same bottom line results. They absolutely will not.
When I say on the board sometimes, IMHO a kid made a mistake going to school XYZ and should have gone to CLEMSON --- this is what I mean. Used to say something like "add that kid to 'the List' " when common sense said to head to CLEMSON and they instead did something self-defeating such as choosing scarolina (hello zach bailey). CLEMSON has a very good track record at developing talent the last 15yrs or more in an environment where the "opportunity" to focus on football, academics, excellence, and being a productive young man is valued/promoted/cherished. That's being a homer to a lot of folks out there. I get it. Don't disagree with the undertone sense of that which may or may not exist. But at the end of the day, there's a lot of scumbag SEC programs or cut-throat big ten programs who typically take/pay/acquire elite talent and do fine with a lot of it........but also throw a TON of it away when it doesn't produce for them within a year or two like it is garbage.
CLEMSON was willing to take 3 or 4yrs to figure out where Beasley was best suited to play b/c they knew he was worth it when he was being recruited. Period. It's very difficult to argue with the All-American, NFL 1st round, and dominating results ever since. And he's far from the only one either. CLEMSON isn't perfect in this regard. Far from it. It also isn't a halfway house for kids who all want to be a made for TV movie special about going from 2 star to NFL draft pick. But dang if the culture at CLEMSON doesn't give any kid fortunate enough to play for the program a better than average shot at overcoming the odds if they bust their tail and accept the coaching/privilege being offered to them. Folks who spend time around CLEMSON and/or attend there know this. Ask any kid who visits if it is just "different" than other places in a good way. They get it. They just have to set foot on campus and it begins.......
yes he was, I put a note at the top of the article that he wasn't listed because he was a high 3 star
Kelvin Grant, who signed in 2002. He had a ton of off-the-field issues, all self-inflicted, I assure you. But besides that, he was so talented, so smooth and gifted and I felt strongly he would make an early impact. He just never committed himself and gave virtually no weight to the little things that are essential to improving.
Looking at Antoine McClain in high school, watching him in person as a prospect on one occasion and then very early after his arrival I really felt he would be a much better collegiate player. He played a lot, he started a lot, but was never the impact guard I felt he was going to be. He just wasn't a clean technician, honestly, and unlike a Nathan Bennett who also wasn't the most polished technician, he was never able to leverage his size and strength to get away with mistakes. A good player on this level, certainly. But I felt he had the potential to be special when he signed.
Those two definitely come to mind since we've been online.
Prior to TI going online, I suppose the one that comes to mind right off the top of my head was (QB) Billy Luckie, who signed with Clemson in 1995. He was a 5.9 on the RR scale, which at that time was The National Recruiting Advisor. There was an aptitude issue there. But beyond that, in terms of sheer talent and ability, they were really fired up about him when they got him to commit. The feeling internally was that Tommy West had finally gotten the QB who was going to help him turn the corner. West constantly talked about his belief that Clemson was going to have to throw the football in order to beat Florida State and the feeling internally was that Luckie was going to be the guy. But it never happened. Of all the quarterbacks I've seen at Clemson over the last 20+ years, strictly in terms of arm strength, Luckie might have been at the top. Certainly in the top two-three. Extremely strong arm.
You're welcome
Players in background from left to right:
Maurice Nelson
Roosevelt Nelson
Ladontae Harris
Haydrian Lewis
The Hulk
Kyle Browning
Grish
The remaining 2 are blurry, but I'm gonna guess it's Paul Muse and Andrew Diomande.
Picture is from summer 2005 (2nd session).
Man Clemson has come a long way in terms of upgrading its talent.
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Grish, Adam, Renfrow--same thing. They all look alike.
