Myles Oliver is as humble as they come, but this past weekend’s events are still surreal.
The Douglas County (Douglasville, Ga.) 2022 cornerback, who was on an official visit to Clemson this weekend, announced his verbal pledge to the Tigers on Sunday afternoon. He did so just a mere 24 hours after announcing that Clemson had extended him a scholarship offer.
Both Oliver and his head coach at Douglas County, Johnny T. White, spoke with The Clemson Insider on Sunday night, recapping the official visit and why he ultimately decided to commit to Clemson.
If anything, it was the family-oriented atmosphere that sold Oliver and his family on Clemson.
“I met the coaches and talked with the coaches,” Oliver said. “We had good conversations. I liked the campus. The dorms. I liked everything, honestly.”
Clemson cornerbacks coach Mike Reed has served as Oliver’s primary recruiter. It was White, who put Reed onto Oliver. The rest is history.
“We’ve built a good relationship and my impression of him is that he’s a cool, funny guy,” Oliver said of Reed. “He’s really honest. He won’t lie to you or be biased or anything.”
What was Reed’s message to Oliver this past weekend?
“He told me to come in and play with a chip on my shoulder and show how good and athletic I am,” he said. “He told me that I’m gonna have to come in and learn the playbook when I get here.”
That won’t be a problem for Oliver, though. He’s always played with a chip on his shoulder. After being overlooked and under-recruited, Oliver trusted the process. He never lost his faith.
“I just knew that my time was going to come eventually, he said. “I just really had to trust the process.”
After Clemson extended an offer to Oliver, he practically committed on the spot.
“Something like that,” he said. “It was quick.”
Following Clemson’s annual awards banquet dinner Saturday, Oliver drove back home with his family. While he was on his way back to Douglasville before the incoming storm, he had found the next place he’d call home in Clemson.
“He was excited,” White said. “They enjoyed the whole visit. I talked to him and his dad [Sunday] morning. They were excited. I just let him know that as hard as he works, I expect that work to even jump up a notch because you’re going to a special place. You gotta be ready to go.
“They rolled out the red carpet,” White said. “Coach Swinney sat with him and talked with him a lot, talked with the family. Myles had said that he started developing a great relationship with the defensive coordinator [Wes Goodwin].
“So, everything was all go. He had a couple of opportunities for some other visits, but it made no sense. He’s done. We’re done. He’s coming back to school now, just focussing on finishing up his second semester strong academically and having a great track season and staying strong ‘cause he’s still in our weightlifting class and getting ready to compete at Clemson.”
White has known Myles since he was around 4 or 5-years-old. Oliver’s father, Marcus, used to be the resource officer at Creekside High School (Fairburn, Ga.) and White was the head coach of the football team.
“This is just amazing,” White said. “I’m just happy to see his goals come to fruition. I know how hard he’s gonna work until he leaves in June. They’re gonna get a guy that’s gonna be ready to go.”
You’d be hard-pressed to crack the smile from White’s face.
“I love all my kids and I love for all of them to be successful, but I gotta be honest with you, this is definitely a family celebration,” White said.
Myles comes from a family that’s had a lot of great football players. He has two first cousins — Brandon, who played wide receiver at Georgia Tech, and Braelen, who is a starting linebacker at the University of Minnesota. Also, his older brother, Malik, played at Jacksonville State.
Those family connections also extend to the NFL. Myles is cousins with New York Jets starting cornerback, Michael Carter II. Carter, who shouted out his “lil cousin,” on Twitter, is also from Douglasville, as he played his high school ball at South Paulding before heading off to an illustrious career at Duke.
It really runs in the family 🔥Congrats to my lil cousin!! Y’all show him some love @MylesOliver_ 🤞🏽 https://t.co/20Pa3ULrtB
— Michael Carter II (@mcarter2nd) January 16, 2022
Myles does have a connection at Clemson, believe it or not. Amari Robinson, who is a junior forward on Clemson’s women’s basketball team also went to Douglas County. According to White, Robinson told Myles that she’d look out for him.
Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!
