It’s time for this week’s edition of The Insider Report.
We hope everyone had a great weekend.
Update on nation’s No. 1 LB after latest Clemson visit
Sammy Brown has made a bunch of trips to Clemson since the spring and was back on campus again last weekend as one of the headliners among the prospects in attendance for the Furman game.
The Clemson Insider caught up with the five-star prospect from Jefferson (Ga.) High School and the nation’s top-ranked linebacker in the 2024 class about his latest visit experience.
Brown (6-2, 227) told us that he “had a really good time” Saturday and enjoyed being able to catch up with Clemson’s coaching staff and speak with them in person.
Brown said he has “a great relationship” with the Tigers’ staff and finds the coaches really easy to talk to. He said he was able to talk with them like he talks to friends – for example, he and defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Wes Goodwin chopped it up about the upcoming hunting season and things like that.
The biggest thing that stood out to Brown on Saturday, he said, was seeing the Tigers wear “E11A Strong” T-shirts during Tiger Walk prior to the game to show support for Bryan Bresee’s sister, Ella, who is battling brain cancer.
“I thought that was really cool and it really shows that family that Clemson has,” he said.
Asked if Saturday’s visit changed anything about where the Tigers stand with him right now, Brown said he wouldn’t say it changed anything but it “definitely was a reassurance of what I already know about them.”
As for future visits, Brown said he and his family are just taking it week by week and don’t have any more set up right now but will probably make it to games around their area.
Brown became the first prospect in the 2024 class to receive an offer from Clemson when he picked up the offer while on campus for the program’s underclassmen day on March 12. He then returned on April 6 to take in the Tigers’ final spring practice prior to their April 9 spring game, before traveling back to campus for another visit during the Swinney Camp in June.
TE with Clemson tie returns to Tiger Town
A fast-rising tight end prospect from the Peach State, with a Clemson connection, returned to Tiger Town for the Furman game.
Milton (Ga.) High School’s Ryan Ghea – a 6-foot-5, 220-pound sophomore in the 2025 class – was back on campus after competing at the Dabo Swinney Camp in June.
Saturday marked his first game-day visit to Clemson.
“I really enjoyed it,” he told TCI. “I had a very good time enjoying everything and just taking it all in.”
“It was a crazy atmosphere between the fans, players, everything,” he added.
Ghea was shown around by offensive analyst Tajh Boyd and also had the chance to spend time with tight ends coach Kyle Richardson and his family in his office.
According to Ghea, Richardson told Ghea that he wants him to camp at Clemson again next summer and explained that Clemson isn’t a school that offers early. Richardson said he wants Ghea to continue sending his film and keep building their relationship.
Ghea said as a tight end, Richardson likes his size, ability to catch the ball with his hands and his playmaking ability all over the field. He also likes Ghea’s physicality and blocking ability, whether it be blocking defensive linemen, linebackers or defensive backs.
Richardson asked if Ghea wanted to come back for the Miami game in November, and he’s going to see if he can make it back for that.
Ghea’s Milton teammate – four-star Clemson safety commit Rob Billings – is planning to be at that game.
The two have built a good bond.
“We started hanging out over this last year, growing our relationship, whether that’s football, watching film together, or if that’s like golfing together, stuff like that,” Ghea said.
Indiana, Louisville, Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, Liberty and UConn all offered Ghea in May before Florida State and Ohio State joined his quickly growing offer list in June. NC State gave him his latest offer in late July.
Tar Heel State RB ‘really loved’ getting back to Clemson
A talented and versatile running back from the Tar Heel State was back in Tiger Town last weekend.
Charlotte (N.C.) Christian School’s Ryan Henley attended the Furman game.
“I really loved getting down there,” he told TCI. “Every time I go down there, it’s a joy to see that the culture remains the same, that culture being consistent and the message from the coaches remaining consistent. But this time, I got to talk with a lot of the coaches and everything and got to sit down and hear what they had to say, which is really cool. I think it kind of gave me a better sense of where I stand with them than last year’s unofficial.”
Henley, a prospect in the class of 2024, visited Clemson for the Florida State game in 2021 and has participated in the Swinney Camp each of the last two summers.
The 5-foot-10, 184-pound junior explained where he stands with the Tigers at this point in the process based on what he’s heard from the coaches.
“They really like me,” he said. “I think they’re just still continuing to build that relationship. I’ve scheduled some calls with Coach (CJ) Spiller, so we’re going to be able to continue to have communication there, build upon that relationship, and I think that’ll be extremely important to the recruiting process there.”
“They were kind of saying they like what I’m doing,” he added. “They’re kind of looking for a back that’s versatile like what I can do in terms of the slot and running back and then be involved in that return game as well and kickoff and just getting involved in special teams.”
Along with Clemson, schools such as South Carolina, Duke, Virginia, UConn and Northwestern have shown interest in Henley, who rushed for more than 800 yards, averaged 8.1 yards per carry and racked up 900-plus all-purpose yards as a sophomore last season.
In the first game of his junior campaign this year, Henley totaled 130 all-purpose yards and a touchdown. Then, in his team’s second game, he filled in at slot receiver due to injuries and made a big impact while accounting for 98 yards and two touchdowns.
Clemson making a move with Peach State CB, teammate of current Tiger
Another name worth keeping an eye on is that of College Park (Ga.) Douglas County’s Israel Boyce, who was back on campus for the Furman game this past weekend. Boyce — a 6-foot, 175-pound cornerback in the class of 2024 — returned to campus after previously participating in the Dabo Swinney Camp back in June.
“My time at the Clemson game was a great experience,” Boyce told The Clemson Insider in a phone interview Sunday night. “I felt like family as soon as I got there. I got to do a lot of stuff, like we got to run across the field, going up the hill — that was all a great experience. The coaching staff, I felt like they was very genuine.”
Boyce heard directly from Mike Reed on Sept. 1 and they’ve maintained close contact since then. According to Boyce, Clemson’s cornerbacks coach “snuck up” on him before Clemson’s 35-12 win over Furman on the sideline. They talked about how his season is going right now, but at the same time, Boyce said they talk just about every day.
Remember, Reed is also now the position coach of true freshman cornerback Myles Oliver, who is out for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery. That’s important to note here because Boyce and Oliver are close friends and former teammates at Douglas County High School.
“I’m getting a lot of love (from Clemson),” Boyce said. “I’m feeding into it. It might be the one.”
Notes on a couple of Clemson commits
The Clemson Insider confirmed over the weekend that Rome (Georgia) four-star defensive lineman, Stephiylan Green, was in attendance for Clemson’s home opener at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.
The news comes after Green was in attendance for Georgia’s 49-3 win over Oregon in Atlanta a week prior. While Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs are still pursuing the Clemson commit, it’s a positive development that Green was in attendance for Saturday’s game, along with Peter Woods, A.J. Hoffler, Ronan Hanafin, Dee Crayton, Branden Strozier, Rob Billings and Zechariah Owens.
Speaking of Hoffler, we had the chance to catch up with him on Sunday night, following his first-ever Clemson gameday experience. Of course, that came on the heels of defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall being in attendance for his game on Friday, in which he recorded three sacks.
“He was really pleased with my game,” Hoffler said of Hall.
Hall, along with the rest of Clemson’s coaching staff, was happy to have Hoffler back on campus. Hoffler felt like he was a part of the team without officially being a part of the roster — that won’t happen until next summer. In any event, he plans on being at just about every Clemson home game this season.
Clemson involved with rising Sunshine State WR
While it remains to be seen whether or not Clemson will add up to three wide receiver commits to its 2023 recruiting class, The Clemson Insider has learned that the Tigers appear to be involved with another senior wideout.
According to Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Cardinal Gibbons WR Patrick Stepelton, Tyler Grisham has been communicating with his father since the spring. Clemson’s wide receivers coach tried to get him up over the summer for a camp, but the dates just didn’t work out.
Grisham followed Stepelton on Twitter the other day and later texted his father, saying that he was looking great and that he would like to get him up to Clemson for a recruiting visit. Stepelton told TCI that he will “100%” be getting up to Tiger Town for a game at some point this season.
While nothing is imminent, Stepelton is viewed as a fast-rising prospect, who could potentially blow up this season, much like Cole Turner. While he doesn’t have the credentials that Noble Johnson or Ronan Hanafin may have, the 6-foot-2, 197-pound wideout could have a similar trajectory to that of Turner, who has received rave reviews since arriving at Clemson.
In any event, he’s a name worth passing along at this point.
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