Tag: Stefan Adams

Clemson checks in on Ohio QB, brother of former Tigers’ target

Clemson offensive line coach Thomas Austin was in Ohio Wednesday. It’s not the first time that the Tigers have scoured The Buckeye State for offensive line help and while Austin visited a familiar school, he wasn’t there to check in on an offensive …

Clemson offensive line coach Thomas Austin was in Ohio Wednesday. It’s not the first time that the Tigers have scoured The Buckeye State for offensive line help and while Austin visited a familiar school, he wasn’t there to check in on an offensive lineman.

He was at Findlay (Oh.) High School to meet with the program’s head coach, Stefan Adams. Austin previously recruited Luke Montgomery out of Findlay, but he pledged to Ohio State earlier this year. 

The elationship he built with Clemson’s offensive line coach is a strong one, so Montgomery phoned Austin to inform him of his decision before making his announcement. Austin wasn’t at Findlay for Montgomery, though. Funny enough, he was there to talk with Adams about Montgomery’s younger brother, Ryan, who is among one of the best quarterbacks in the class of 2025.

“He was just checking in,” Adams told The Clemson Insider. “Ryan’s the quarterback. I think, obviously, just showing a little bit of interest. We’ve built a good relationship on our end. I think anytime that he can get out to Ohio, I think he’d like to swing by and catch up. We have a couple of young guys as well too, that besides Ryan, can have some possibilities down the line.”

Even though he’s only a freshman, Ryan currently holds offers from Georgia, Georgia Tech, Miami (OH), Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, Pitt, Tennessee and Toledo.

“I think it starts with his family, I think it starts with him as an individual,” Adams said when asked about Ryan’s makeup. “I’d like to say as we can kind of progress and move forward with our program overall, I’d like to think that people are deciding to come and see us at all levels because of the quality of people we have.

“Ryan’s a very high-cerebral young man. He’s a little more reserved, but also he’s young. I’m super excited to see what he has to build on in the future. He played as a freshman. He started every game of the year and went on to a playoff run. He did a fantastic job and had great, solid numbers in passing, touchdown and interception ratio. He’s worked extremely hard this offseason to continue to build on his skill set.”

Adams is super impressed with a kid who was 6-foot-2, 180-pounds as a freshman — which as a freshman is pretty good. Ryan has grown an inch and added 20 pounds to his frame after dedicating himself to the weight room this offseason. He’s also dedicated himself to his craft and has also gotten better as a quarterback.

“He’s really doing the job that it takes to be, not just a talented football player, but also a top-notch student-athlete,” Adams said.

With that being said, Ryan is his own person. While he has the influence and support of his older brother, he’s going to be making his own decisions, as far as his recruitment is concerned.

Though, Luke’s relationship with schools like Clemson could help open some doors for Ryan during his recruiting process.

“They all know that this is Ryan’s deal, this is Ryan’s recruitment,” Adams continued. “Luke has done a really great job of really trying to help prepare Ryan for the things that are in front of him and ultimately, I think the Clemson guys, the Clemson staff, knows that we want to continue to have options for all of our kids.

“As the journey goes on, I think the way we treat them, the way they treat us, they want to keep the door open. I think even mom and dad and the family have done a really good job of keeping things open. He’s not too good for any school. He’s definitely interested in his own path, his own recruitment. He’s looking forward to going on this journey.”

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Coach gives insight into elite OL’s take on Caldwell’s new role, Austin’s promotion

The Clemson Insider recently spoke with the head coach of an elite prospect in the 2023 recruiting class to get a sense of where his head was at with the news that now-former Clemson offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell would be transitioning into …

The Clemson Insider recently spoke with the head coach of an elite prospect in the 2023 recruiting class to get a sense of where his head was at with the news that now-former Clemson offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell would be transitioning into an off-field role.

Stefan Adams, who is the head coach at Findlay (Oh.) High School touched on Caldwell’s departure and how the transition to Thomas Austin as Clemson’s offensive line coach could impact the recruitment of 2023 four-star offensive lineman Luke Montgomery.

Montgomery, of course, plays for Adams at Findlay and the two, along with Montgomery’s father, were in attendance for Clemson’s 48-27 win over Wake Forest at Memorial Stadium on Nov. 20, 2021.

“It wasn’t solidified,” Adams told TCI. “Obviously, we’ve had connections throughout this whole from the start to the visit, we’ve had contact with Coach Caldwell. And then Coach Austin kind of came into the fold as well. We went down there and visited with him a little bit more, So we kind of figured something like that would wind up being the natural progression.”

Adams had a chance to talk with Montgomery following Dabo Swinney’s announcement last week that Caldwell would be transitioning into the role of the team’s director of high school relations.

“Just seeing it coming and having a little bit of an idea that he’d be stepping into that role,” Adams said. “Luke loves Coach Caldwell. I want to make sure I make that known first. Genuinely enjoy talking to Coach Caldwell and him talking to myself, and his excitement talking about Luke and Luke’s ability, first and foremost as a human being, but really more as a football player as well too. Coach Caldwell obviously is the man.

“Then, you kind of add to the fold in the Clemson way and add you, Coach Austin. Just in our conversations that we’ve had, Luke is definitely excited that Coach Caldwell is gonna stick around the program, but definitely excited to continue to get to know Coach Austin more and more and more as the process goes on.”

Obviously, Adams hasn’t had the level of contact with Austin that he’s had with Caldwell in the past, but he was left very impressed with how Austin handled himself and in which the way he made himself and Montgomery feel at home.

“There are key things to me that really stand out with coaches and their recruiting of a player,” Adams said of Austin. “He’s very genuine. One thing that really stood out to me once again —  just being down there — was how much he talked about his wife and his family. How thankful he was for them. That was a big standout that family is important. How much he values his faith was huge. Once again, the genuine conversation is what stood out to me.

“I’ve been lucky enough to sit down with a lot of coaches at all levels and you love it when you have someone who is a genuine person, who is just themselves and you’re able to have a conversation for five minutes or 20 or 30 minutes and it’s all authentic and it’s real. Coach Austin was every bit of that. I really enjoyed getting to know him, his wife and his kids. We really enjoyed even taking a little mini-tour and checking out the facility with him as well too. He’s definitely a Clemson guy. He lives the Clemson way. It’s a big testament to obviously Coach Swinney in how he operates and runs things. He’s getting the best of the best and he’s getting these guys to come back and really step up into these roles. It’s very impressive.”

How does Montgomery feel about Austin?

“He loves him,” Adams said. “Loves him. Loves his energy. Loves his spirit. Easy to talk. Luke is an easy guy to talk to as well. He’s very upbeat, very outgoing. He really is an engaging individual. Those two, just listening to them and watching them converse throughout the whole time, there was a genuine relationship there and definitely an excitement about the future.”

Montgomery, who’s now down to Clemson, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, Oklahoma and Michigan in his recruitment, could be returning to Clemson in the near future. There’s a possibility he’ll be in attendance for the program’s Elite Junior Day on Jan. 29, according to Adams, and have an opportunity to see Austin in person for the first time since his promotion.

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Caldwell visits pair of big-time linemen

Clemson offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell made two stops in the state of Ohio Thursday. On his way to visit Clemson Strongsville (Oh.) 2022 four-star offensive tackle commit Blake Miller, Caldwell made a pit stop a little over two hours from his …

Clemson offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell made two stops in the state of  Ohio Thursday.

On his way to visit Clemson Strongsville (Oh.) 2022 four-star offensive tackle commit Blake Miller, Caldwell made a pit stop a little over two hours from his desired destination.

He stopped by Findlay High School, where he met with Stefan Adams, who is the head coach of 2023 four-star offensive tackle Luke Montgomery.

Montgomery (6-5, 260) ranks as the No. 6 offensive tackle and No. 59 overall prospect in the 2023 class, per the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Adams described the visit to The Clemson Insider as “standard procedure.”

“He just wanted to reaffirm that he loves [Luke] and he’s definitely still a big recruit for him,” he told TCI.

According to Adams, Montgomery will likely be in attendance for Clemson’s Junior Day in the new year.

Montgomery’s coach had nothing but positive things to say about the Tigers’ offensive line coach.

“Along this trip and this [recruiting] trail, he’s a top-person, hands down,” Adams said. “When I get a chance to talk with him, he’s just a very warm, southern guy…I thoroughly enjoy every time I get a text, call, a sit-down like I did today, I always feel grateful and humble with how he does that and how he approaches it, and how genuine he actually is when he comes by.”

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Coach Speak: Elite OL’s head coach recaps Clemson visit

The Clemson Insider had the chance to catch up with a high school head coach, who was in Death Valley this past weekend, on a recruiting trip with an elite four-star prospect in the 2023 class. Stefan Adams, who is Luke Montgomery’s head coach at …

The Clemson Insider had the chance to catch up with a high school head coach, who was in Death Valley this past weekend, on a recruiting trip with an elite four-star prospect in the 2023 class.

Stefan Adams, who is Luke Montgomery’s head coach at Findlay (Ohio), made sure to tag along to the offensive lineman’s visit to Clemson this past Saturday.

Ahead of his visit to Clemson, Montgomery dropped his final six schools on Thursday afternoon via social media. He’s now down to Clemson, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, Oklahoma and Michigan.

“He enjoyed it,” Adams told TCI. “He definitely enjoyed a lot of the things and reasons why he was so curious about the place for a while, the things he heard. Luke’s a very strong faith-based kid and his parents hold those and instill those values very seriously, so he takes them very seriously. I think just that, the culture, obviously the success that they’ve had and also the way that they do it, they have a process. They have the way that they go after kids and guys that they want. They are very particular about it and I think it just led to a lot of curiosity.

“He definitely enjoyed it. They treated him well, all their recruits they treat amazingly, but obviously, he was a priority guy, so he had a blast. He enjoyed it. He loved it. We had a lot of conversations on the way back about just some of the awesome stuff that happened and transpired.”

Adams, Montgomery, and his father, along with Dabo Swinney and his wife, Kathleen, and some of the recruiting coordinators all had a chance to meet about an hour before the game in Clemson’s head coach’s office.

It was Montgomery’s first trip back to Clemson since the Tigers offered him a scholarship on Sept. 2. Adams believes that Montgomery’s return visit to Tiger Town reaffirmed why he placed Clemson in his top-6 schools and why the Tigers will likely be in his recruitment until the very end.

“They check a lot of the boxes that I know he is looking for and that is high on the list of his needs to be able to fulfill his personal football wishes,” he said. “Great atmosphere, great crowd support. It’s amazing you get certain places, you get there and you can tell that Clemson’s Clemson. It’s definitely a homey feel all around… just everything, it was definitely well done. We walked away very impressed.”

Adams also came away really impressed with the way Clemson offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell has recruited Montgomery.

“Coach Caldwell, first and foremost, he’s a blast to have conversations with and talk to,” Adams said. “He’s a delight. He’s funny. He’s southern as all get out. He’s warm. He’s great. He’s done a phenomenal job of [recruiting Luke]. He’s done a really good job.”

“Been super proud to be able to connect with him and be able to talk on a personal level too,” he added. “To listen and hear the things that he’s excited about with Luke aren’t just always football stuff, it’s who he is as a person. Coach Caldwell was very, very warm and very, very friendly… he’s a sincere guy. He really believes in Luke and what Luke can be and what he can be developed to be. Coach Caldwell is an awesome dude.”

Adams believes that Clemson’s 48-27 win over Wake Forest was the perfect game for Montgomery to attend. That’s especially true when considering that the offensive line turned in its best performance of the season and Caldwell earned a game ball after the lopsided victory.

“I think that was a testament to who they are,” he said. “I was talking to them, 17 scholarships players athletes not dressing, that’s all positions. Just kind of one of those fluke football years. For those guys to be able to go out there and turn in a performance as well as they did…they really had to lean on their offensive lineman and to watch them turn in that performance they did and be able to open the holes that they did for the backs and be able to give D.J. [Uiagalelei] the time that they did, I think that was super impressive on his coaching ability…I don’t think it could have gone any better for Luke being a lineman and seeing that adversity and seeing the belief in the guys to go out there and get the job done.”

Adams definitely felt like Montgomery was made a priority throughout his time on campus.

“There’s no doubt about it,” Adams said. “Those guys did an awesome job. Just the way they moved around the whole time. There was a couple of assistants that really kind of stuck around and helped out with Luke too. It was well done. Everybody made him feel warm. Everyone made him feel a part of it. It was definitely an awesome experience and he definitely felt like he was a priority, for sure.”

Montgomery (6-5, 260) ranks as the No. 6 offensive tackle and No. 59 overall prospect in the 2023 class, per the 247Sports Composite rankings.

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