It’s time for this week’s edition of The Insider Report.
We hope everyone had a great weekend.
The latest on David Ojiegebe
The Clemson Insider spoke with St. John’s College (Washington, D.C.) four-star edge rusher David Ojiegbe over the phone Monday, shortly after he announced via social media that he will be making his commitment next Wednesday, April 27.
Ojiegbe indicated that everything’s going pretty well as he gets close to making his decision. He told us he’s currently focused on schools like Clemson, Miami, North Carolina, N.C. State, Michigan, Maryland and LSU.
There was a lot of buzz coming out of the Orange & White Spring Game regarding Ojiegebe and from what we gathered and reported in last week’s edition of the Insider Report, Ojiegbe’s latest visit to Clemson went very well, and Ojiegbe himself told us that he enjoyed his time while on campus for the game.
“The visit was pretty good,” Ojiegbe said. “I got to talk with Coach Dabo a little bit more and talk with him on a personal level. He was just telling me, just know that my offer is committable and just emphasizing how big of a role I’d play, and just how they want me. It was a good conversation with him and Coach Lemanski (Hall).”
There’s a plan in place for Ojiegbe to play early at Clemson, which will definitely be a factor in his decision come next Wednesday. When it comes time for Ojiegbe to make his decision, what are going to be some of the more important factors he’s looking for?
“Just being developed as a player and as a man,” Ojiegbe said, “and just what can they do for me after football? Because football’s gonna be over (for me) soon. It’s not that long, the average span of an NFL player or a college football player. I just want to make sure that I’ll be straight after football and have a platform to make money and become a better man, and actually, just have a good major too, so I can sustain myself for the rest of my life.”
An update on Creed Whittemore
Prior to this week’s edition of the Insider Report, TCI spoke with Creed Whittemore, an athlete out of F.W. Bucholz (Gainesville, Fla.), who was recently named a four-star prospect by 247Sports.
Whittemore has been keeping in contact with Clemson ahead of the start of his high school’s spring practice, as wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham will make his way down to the Sunshine State at some point in the near future to watch Whittemore — a high school quarterback — run routes.
“It’s still been kind of the same thing,” Whittemore said regarding what he’s been hearing from Clemson lately. “Just been communicating with Coach Grisham and they’ll be here for spring (practice), which is in about a week, so just getting ready for that.”
How has his relationship developed with Grisham since they first got in contact?
“I think, obviously, he’s a man of his word,” he said of Grisham. “He’s not gonna right you wrong or lead you down the wrong path, which I respect for sure as a college coach because it is sort of a business for them. That’s their job. You can definitely respect the way he handles recruiting and just how hard it is to be straight up with kids and I think he does a great job of that.”
Grisham isn’t the only coach stopping by Bucholz to watch Whittemore run routes. Stanford’s offensive coordinator, Tavita Pritchard, will be there on Thursday, as well as all the schools that have offered Whittemore and the University of Alabama.
Every time we speak with Whittemore, he seems to add another offer to his collection. Since visiting for Clemson’s second junior day of the year on March 5, he’s picked up offers from Georgia Tech, Miami, Michigan, Penn State and was re-offered by the new coaching staff at the University of Florida.
“You can’t lie, it’s always a blessing,” Whittemore said, “and just a little encouragement when you get an offer. It’s just a way to keep encouraging yourself.”
Big-time in-state OL updates recruitment, interest from Clemson
Dorman High School (Roebuck, S.C.)’s D.J. Geth – a 6-foot-6, 310-pound junior in the 2023 class – was on Clemson’s campus for an unofficial visit on April 4.
While he was originally supposed to make it back for Clemson’s Orange & White Spring Game five days later, that never was able to materialize. In any event, Geth was able to recap his time at Clemson in an interview with TCI.
“My visit to Clemson was good,” Geth said. “I went to the spring practice and saw how intense and organized their practice is.”
Geth is teammates at Dorman with fellow class of 2023 offensive lineman Markee Anderson, who received an offer from Clemson last September, and the two are good friends.
Though the Tigers haven’t yet offered Geth, he is garnering interest from Thomas Austin and has been communicating with Clemson’s new offensive line coach.
Geth, who plays tackle at Dorman, intrigues Austin and the Tigers with his ability to man multiple positions on the O-line and his potential as a center.
What was Geth able to hear from the coaching staff when he was back on campus?
“I heard that they really like what they see from me and that they are looking forward to continuing this process with me,” he said.
In Geth’s eyes, his connection and his relationship with Clemson almost certainly became stronger thanks to this month’s visit. Geth, who competed at the Dabo Swinney Camp last summer, also visited Clemson for the UConn game last November.
He’s the son of Ed Geth, who played basketball at North Carolina and was a member of the Tar Heels’ 1993 national championship team.
Staff writer Gavin Oliver contributed to this story.
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