New Bern (N.C.) High School four-star defensive lineman Keith Sampson Jr. had a good idea that an offer from Clemson was in the cards for him. The highly regarded class of 2023 prospect just didn’t know when exactly that offer from the Tigers would be coming his way.
It finally did on Tuesday, when Sampson was informed of his offer during a FaceTime call with Clemson defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall and co-defensive coordinator Mickey Conn.
“I knew it was coming eventually, I just didn’t know when it was coming because I knew that their recruiting process was slower, and Coach Hall just kept telling me to be patient,” Sampson told The Clemson Insider shortly after receiving the offer. “So, it was just one of things. It was a surprise, but at the same time, you knew that was coming.”
Although Sampson wasn’t totally surprised by the offer, that didn’t make it any less special for the 6-foot-4, 285-pound junior.
“I definitely had a big smile on my face,” he said. “I will say Clemson’s one of the schools that I really wanted to get an offer from. I really like them. I’ve just always liked their school.”
What did Sampson – ranked by 247Sports as the nation’s No. 20 defensive lineman and No. 143 overall prospect in the 2023 class – hear from Hall and Conn when they extended the offer?
“They just loved my tape,” Sampson said. “They said they like how I play, and they just like me as a person. They heard good things from Coach Hall about me. So, they just loved everything about me.”
Sampson has been building a strong bond with Hall and estimates they communicate in some capacity about three to five times a week.
“It’s growing a lot,” Sampson said of his relationship with Hall. “If it’s not every day, then it’s every other day that we’re talking, in some shape.”
With an offer from the Tigers now in tow, Sampson will travel to Clemson for its elite junior day Jan. 29. He is also slated to visit South Carolina on Jan. 15 and NC State on Jan. 22.
The Gamecocks and Wolfpack have both offered Sampson as well, along with schools such as Alabama, Georgia, Texas A&M, Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Florida and Florida State, among others.
Sampson plans to drop his top five schools on Jan. 15, and intends to make his commitment sometime during his senior season.
The Tigers are in a good spot with Sampson, he says, after entering the mix with Tuesday’s offer.
“It’s really high,” he said of where Clemson stands with him. “I will say that.”
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