Clemson is keeping tabs on a standout Sunshine State offensive lineman with close to double digit scholarship offers.
Orange Park (Fla.) High School class of 2023 prospect Roderick Kearney has been hearing from Clemson and his area recruiter for the Tigers, C.J. Spiller, heading into his junior campaign.
“They send me mail, and I talked to the running backs coach,” Kearney said of Clemson and Spiller. “He just said he was going to keep an eye on me and see how this season goes, then they’re going to get back at me.”
The 6-foot-4, 275-pound offensive tackle appreciates the interest from Clemson and is using it as motivation going into his season.
“It means a lot to me,” Kearney said. “It makes me want to work harder.”
Right now, Kearney is paying less attention to the recruiting process and more attention to honing his craft as a lineman. He knows if he does that and develops his game, then his recruitment will take care of itself.
“I’ve been just focusing on getting better at football and just letting the recruitment come,” he said.
Kearney was only able to visit a couple of schools this summer – both in state, Florida State and UCF – but named FSU, UCF and South Carolina as schools he hopes to check out on gamedays this season, along with Clemson.
“Just experience the area,” he said of what he hopes to get out of a future Clemson visit. “They’ve got a lot of good fans over there, and I heard it’s a really good campus, too.”
“I like how they’re a family over there,” he added when asked about his overall impressions of the Tigers. “They bond together, they win games together. Very good program.”
Kearney — who also plays defensive end for his high school team and describes himself as a “fast, aggressive playmaker” at the line of scrimmage — has collected offers from FSU, Florida, Miami, UCF, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Ole Miss, West Virginia and Oregon.
Clemson has the potential to shake things up in Kearney’s recruitment if it comes calling with an offer of its own in the future.
“It would impact my recruitment majorly,” he said. “It would just make more schools come. But down the road, if they do end up giving me an offer, I would be blessed.”