Tag: T.J. Searcy

Big-time DL talks ‘amazing’ Clemson offer, first trip to Tiger Town

TJ Searcy wasn’t entirely surprised when Clemson pulled the trigger on an offer this past weekend. The four-star defensive lineman out of Upson-Lee (Thomaston, Ga.) had an idea that an offer was coming. “It feels amazing to have an offer from …

TJ Searcy wasn’t entirely surprised when Clemson pulled the trigger on an offer this past weekend.

The four-star defensive lineman out of Upson-Lee (Thomaston, Ga.) had an idea that an offer was coming.

“It feels amazing to have an offer from Clemson because of how good of a program they are,” he told The Clemson Insider.

Searcy — a 6-foot-5, 250-pound junior — thoroughly enjoyed his first visit to Clemson’s campus. He didn’t know a lot about the school prior to this past weekend’s visit but certainly was able to learn a lot, especially from Dabo Swinney’s presentation. He later told TCI that Clemson head coach speaking to the recruits Saturday was the favorite part of his visit.

Obviously, Searcy had a chance to chat with defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall and spend time with him throughout the day. 

“Coach Hall, he said he liked my film, he liked the way I played and if I come to Clemson, he’ll get the best out of me,” Searcy said.

Searcy is a good run-stopper, who uses his length and size to his advantage.

Hall has been in contact with Searcy for over two months now. According to Searcy, Hall told him that he was a player that he would offer, but he just had to get on campus. That obviously came to fruition Saturday and is why Searcy wasn’t terribly surprised when Hall presented him with his scholarship offer from Clemson.

Where does Clemson currently rank in Searcy’s recruitment?

“They’re definitely a great school, so, of course, they’d be towards the top,” he said.

Searcy is hoping that he can get back to campus in the near future. He felt that the family vibe and atmosphere at Clemson were a lot different than at other schools. It was tangible and it was real.

“That was the main focus, probably about the day, just trying to let the players know that it’s a family at Clemson,” Searcy said.

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4-star defensive ends pick up Clemson offers on visit

Multiple defensive linemen in the 2023 class picked up Clemson offers on Saturday while on campus for the Tigers’ “spring elite day”, their second junior day of the year. Four-star defensive ends Hunter Osborne, TJ Searcy and AJ Hoffler all …

Multiple defensive linemen in the 2023 class picked up Clemson offers on Saturday while on campus for the Tigers’ “spring elite day”, their second junior day of the year.

Four-star defensive ends Hunter Osborne, TJ Searcy and AJ Hoffler all announced offers from the Tigers.

Osborne (6-4, 260), from Hewitt-Trussville (Trussville, Ala.), is ranked as the No. 13 defensive lineman and No. 113 overall prospect in the 2023 class by 247Sports.

Searcy (6-5, 250), from Upson-Lee (Thomaston, Ga.), is ranked as the No. 28 defensive lineman and No. 176 overall prospect in the 2023 class by 247Sports, while Hoffler (6-5, 240), from Woodward Academy (Atlanta, Ga.), is ranked as the No. 31 defensive lineman and No. 199 overall prospect in the 2023 class by 247Sports.

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Top talent flocking to Tiger Town for Clemson’s ‘spring elite day’

Clemson is set to host a slew of top prospects today for its second junior day of the year, which the Tigers are dubbing their “spring elite day” for recruits in the class of 2023. Among the headliners expected to be in attendance is Central (Phenix …

Clemson is set to host a slew of top prospects today for its second junior day of the year, which the Tigers are dubbing their “spring elite day” for recruits in the class of 2023.

Among the headliners expected to be in attendance is Central (Phenix City, Ala.) five-star A.J. Harris, the nation’s No. 2 cornerback and No. 17 overall prospect in the 2023 class, per the 247Sports Composite rankings. The 6-foot-2, 175-pounder has made multiple trips to Tiger Town and is a priority target for the Tigers. Last September, he released a top seven comprised of Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Georgia and Ohio State.

Harris will be joined on campus by a host of other talented defensive backs, including Harris’ teammate at Central, cornerback Quintavious Billingsley; Lake Mary (Fla.) four-star cornerback Braedan Marshall; Eagles Landing Christian Academy (McDonough, Ga.) three-star cornerback Colton Hood; Daniel (Central, S.C.) cornerback Misun Kelley; North Oconee (Bogart, Ga.) cornerback Khalil Barnes; Loachapoka (Auburn, Ala.) cornerback Jacorious Hart; Milton (Alpharetta, Ga.) three-star safety Robert Billings; and A.C. Reynolds (Asheville, N.C.) safety Dashawn Stone.

Another headliner slated to be on hand for the spring elite day is Oceanside Collegiate Academy (Mount Pleasant, S.C.) four-star offensive lineman Monroe Freeling.

It will mark his first visit to Clemson since attending the Florida State game in late October of last year. He was also on campus last June to participate in the Dabo Swinney Camp, after which he picked up an offer from the Tigers.

Freeling said during a recent interview with The Clemson Insider that the Tigers “stand highly” in his recruitment heading into today’s visit.

“I really loved the culture there when I first went up and I’ve been maintaining a good relationship with (offensive line) coach (Thomas) Austin,” he said, “and I’m just looking forward to growing it some more when I get out there.”

Along with Clemson, which is heavily pursuing Freeling, he named Miami and Notre Dame as a couple of schools that have been recruiting him the hardest.

According to the 247Sports Composite, Freeling is the No. 1 prospect in South Carolina, No. 9 offensive tackle nationally and No. 82 overall prospect for the 2023 class.

South Point (Belmont, N.C.) four-star offensive lineman Sullivan Absher will also return to Clemson after picking up an offer from the Tigers in February – an offer that he told TCI he “had been working for, for a very long time.”  He previously traveled to Clemson twice during this past season – first for the Boston College game in October and then for the Wake Forest game in November.

Another big-time offensive lineman will be on campus today as well in Eagles Landing Christian Academy (McDonough, Ga.) four-star tackle Zechariah Owens.

As for the defensive linemen expected to be among the junior day visitors, there are several prominent prospects, namely St. John’s (Washington, D.C.) four-star David Ojiegbe, Hewitt-Trussville (Trussville, Ala.) four-star Hunter Osborne, Rome (Ga.) four-star Stephiylan Green, Upson-Lee (Thomaston, Ga.) four-star T.J. Searcy and Woodward Academy (Atlanta, Ga.) four-star A.J. Hoffler.

A bunch of other standout class of 2023 prospects are on the expected guest list for the spring elite day, as well, including Hickory Ridge (Harrisburg, N.C.) four-star wide receiver Christian Hamilton; Bridgeland (Cypress, Texas) four-star tight end Reid Mikeska; Denmark (Alpharetta, Ga.) four-star linebacker Dee Crayton; Fairfax (Va.) four-star linebacker Tony Rojas; F.W. Buchholz (Gainesville, Fla.) three-star wide receiver Creed Whittemore; Maiden (N.C.) High School three-star wide receiver Chris Culliver; Phoebus (Hampton, Va.) three-star athlete Jordan Bass; Sumter (S.C.) athlete Zyeir Gamble; and Dutch Fork (Irmo, S.C.) running back Jarvis Green.

A few notable 2024 prospects are planning to visit Clemson today, too, in Carrollwood Day (Tampa, Fla.) four-star defensive back Tavoy Feagin, Weddington (Matthews, N.C.) tight end Brooks Mauk and Towers (Decatur, Ga.) wide receiver/cornerback Keshawn Weathers.

Clemson Variety & Frame is doing their part to help bring you some classic new barware and help one of the local businesses that helps make Clemson special.

Order your Nick’s barware and do your part to help.  #SaveNicks

Florida and coach Billy Napier dish out offer to 4-star defensive lineman

Napier’s out there handing out offers like Oprah handing out hams.

Gators coach Billy Napier and his staff have been busy this past week, passing out offers to many recruits in the class of 2023. One player to recently receive the green light from Florida is four-star defensive lineman T.J. Searcy who hails from Thomaston, Georgia.

Napier was the coach who extended the offer to Searcy. His conversation with the head coach was his first one to date, but Napier made a strong first impression.

“He seems like a real cool guy,” he said. “He seemed really down to earth. He seemed like he knows what he is talking about. He seems like he cares about his players.”

However, linebackers coach Mike Peterson is someone Searcy has had a previous relationship with from when he recruited him to South Carolina. It’s made the transition between Florida and him smoother.

He likes Peterson because of how their talks don’t always center around football.

“He will ask me about myself and checks up on my family,” Searcy said. “I find those things important to me and he has already got that bond with me.”

He finds Peterson’s coaching style effective because of his ability to slow the game down for his players.

The Gators like Searcy as an edge outside rushing linebacker in their defense and believe his 6-foot-5-inch, 250-pound frame fits what they want from that position.

He added that he doesn’t have any favorites at this point or when he wants to make a decision, but hopes to make a trip to Florida as well as Tennessee, Clemson and Auburn.

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