Clemson is sitting well early on with this promising defensive line prospect from the Yellowhammer State with more than a half-dozen power conference offers.
Opelika (Ala.) High School’s Malik Autry is a young prospect in the class of 2025, so he doesn’t currently hold an offer from the Tigers, who typically don’t dispense offers earlier than the summer before a recruit’s junior year.
But although he doesn’t have the offer yet, the 6-foot-6, 265-pound rising sophomore is still really high on Clemson.
“Even though I don’t have the offer yet, they are still very high,” Autry told The Clemson Insider recently, regarding where the Tigers stand with him early in his recruitment. “I know they don’t offer early, so we’ll see.”
The ACC’s Tigers are, in fact, one of the teams Autry is feeling the most love from at this point in his recruiting process — along with a couple of other Tigers from the SEC.
“Definitely Clemson, Auburn and a little LSU,” he said.
Autry made visits this summer to each of those schools and said he wants to get to games at all of them this fall.
He was on Clemson’s campus in early June, when he participated in the Dabo Swinney Camp for the second consecutive summer and had the chance to work on his craft as a D-lineman while learning from defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall and defensive tackles coach Nick Eason.
“By far the best camp to learn from,” Autry said, reflecting on his camp experience. “Coach Hall and Coach Eason both gave me great tips when going against the older guys. If you wanna go camp somewhere to get better, go to Clemson.”
Autry isn’t sure exactly when he’ll make it to Death Valley this fall but is very much looking forward to returning to Tiger Town.
“I honestly don’t know,” he said, “but all I know is I can’t wait.”
Autry has accumulated early offers from Auburn, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Michigan, Kentucky and LSU.
Clemson’s family atmosphere appeals strongly to Autry, who believes it’s genuine, and who would love to add the Tigers to his aforementioned offer list in the future.
“Clemson is one big family, I’ll tell anyone that,” he said. “They’re legit.”
Along with traveling to Clemson for the Swinney Camp this summer and last summer, Autry made an unofficial visit to the school this past March.
“It was great,” he said to TCI after the visit. “They have a great facility with the bowling alley and basketball (court), and it just felt like home with all the coaches. And then the way that all the coaches have been (at Clemson) for such a long time… Most of the coaches played there and their kids went there, and it just seemed like one big whole family.”
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