An NFL legacy recruit and a talented defensive back from the Peach State made his way to Clemson’s campus this past weekend and left with an offer in hand.
Colton Hood, — a 6-foot-1, 175-pound junior — attended the Tigers’ second junior day of the year — their “spring elite day” — this past Saturday and came away from the visit just blown away from the visit and everything Clemson had to offer.
The Eagles Landing Christian Academy (McDonough, Ga.) three-star prospect currently ranks as the No. 50 cornerback in the 2023 recruiting class, according to 247Sports.
“It was good, I loved it personally,” Hood told The Clemson Insider in an exclusive phone interview Sunday. “Coach (Dabo) Swinney and Coach (Mike) Reed, are the ones who recruited me and offered me. Coach Swinney, he’s a lot like my ex-head coach — Coach (Jonathan) Gess — he went to Hebron, but he reminds me a lot of him. I love Coach Gess, so that’s a plus.”
Believe it or not, he was actually expecting the offer from Clemson. According to Hood, Reed had previously told him that the Tigers wanted to get him on campus so they could offer him.
“It means a lot,” Hood said. “What they say is that Clemson is a part of that big four. Once you get one of those offers from one of those big four, you know you’re official. They’re always competitive. I was ecstatic about it. I loved the campus and all the other coaches too. They were really family-oriented.”
He was ecstatic once Clemson’s cornerbacks coach presented him with the good news. With that being said, what else did Hood hear from Reed, while he was on campus?
“He talked about how they treat their players and how they focus more on what’s after college,” he said, “and where you’re at when you’re 25 or what’s after the NFL more than they do on just the right now for football.
“It means a lot because that’s what my parents talk about to me. They say that football, someday that ball’s gonna lose the air. It’s like where are you when that ball runs out of air?”
Hood is a fan of Reed’s coaching style. He noticed that the cornerbacks coach was pretty tough on his players, but it was all constructive criticism. Reed was helping his corners more than he was tearing him down.
We previously mentioned that Hood is an NFL legacy recruit, as his uncle, Roderick, played eight seasons in the NFL after starring at Auburn University. What we didn’t mention is that Reed coached Roderick while they were both with the Philadelphia Eagles from 2003-06.
“He told me that he was a great guy and that he’s a really good guy,” Colton said. “He gave him a good word, I would say.”
Colton indicated that Clemson is “definitely up there” in his recruitment, now that he has an offer from the Tigers.
By now, we know that he wasn’t the only Eagles Landing product to leave campus with an offer. His teammate, four-star offensive lineman Zecahariah Owens, also reported an offer from Clemson, which he now considers to be the No. 1 school in his recruitment.
“It means a lot because ‘Big Zack,’ he’s like a brother to me,” Colton said of Owens. “We were planning on going to the same college, so it means a lot.”
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