Three-star defensive back Khalil Barnes spoke to The Clemson Insider in a follow-up interview following his visit to Death Valley on Oct. 22.
Barnes said to The Clemson Insider prior to his visit that he looked forward to meeting coach Dabo Swinney, feeling the atmosphere of Death Valley and seeing what Clemson had to offer and it seems like Clemson didn’t disappoint the safety target.
“Man, Death Valley lived up to the hype,” he said. “The crowd was in the game all day long and they love their Tigers. They also pay attention to recruiting, because I had a few fans stop and ask me for pictures and just showing love.”
Barnes also had the opportunity to connect with Swinney, as well as the coaches that have recruited him, safeties coach Mickey Conn and defensive coordinator Wesley Goodwin.
“I talked to coach Swinney before the game,” he said. “His message to me was just that he wants me to be a part of his team not only because I’m a special player, but he feels like I’m a culture fit for them. I spent a lot of time with coach Conn and coach Goodwin as well.”
It wasn’t just the coaches and staff that welcomed Barnes, but the players as well. Barnes expressed that between the interactions he had on Saturday and the environment of Death Valley, Clemson was “gonna be hard to beat.”
“The team was really cool,” he said. “All the guys showed love to recruits and after the game and even when they were down they never panicked and showed a lot of faith in each other, which is cool. They set a standard high for my next visits. Gonna be hard to beat.”
The key prospect was joined by his dad and both his high school head coach and offensive coordinator. Barnes wasn’t the only one who loved Clemson.
“My dad and my head coach Tyler Aurandt and offensive coordinator Kurt Dorehman came with me,” he said. “And, yes they loved everything about the place.”
Clemson had a thrilling, come-from-behind victory over Syracuse and Barnes just feels like that’s what Clemson does. He expressed his thoughts about the outcome of the game.
“Man, I don’t know why, I just always feel like Clemson finds a way to win,” he said. “Even when they were down, you always have a gut feeling they are going to find a way to pull it out and I’m glad they did, because it made the visit even better.”
Being a top defensive back prospect for the class of 2023, Barnes had some insights about how the defense played, fending off a talented Syracuse offense.
“Man, they kept the team in it simple,” he said. “Shout out to coach Goodwin and the staff for pitching a second half shutout.”
When he reflects on his visit, he thinks about how Clemson made history and there was just so much hype surrounding the team in that moment.
“It would’ve probably been the locker room environment after just seeing how hype it was to see history being made,” he said.
