Tag: Tyler Grisham

Clemson coaches ‘pumped’ about new WR signee, brother of former Tiger

While he’s the brother of a former Clemson standout safety, Cole Turner wasn’t on the Tigers’ radar. Dabo Swinney has known Turner for a long time, but he was primarily a basketball player. He didn’t play football. By the time Vestavia Hills got him …

While he’s the brother of a former Clemson standout safety, Cole Turner wasn’t on the Tigers’ radar.

Dabo Swinney has known Turner for a long time, but he was primarily a basketball player. He didn’t play football. By the time Vestavia Hills got him to join the football team, the pandemic had rolled around. It would eventually play a factor in his recruitment.

Turner’s grandfather reached out to Clemson’s head coach and told him that he might want to watch the three-star receiver out of Vestavia Hills (Ala.) High School. He obliged and was in contact with the younger Turner brother in November, telling him that Clemson wanted to keep him under the radar for the time being.

“I knew if people watched his tape, he was gonna get a lot of opportunities,” Swinney said during his National Signing Day press conference Wednesday. “And, that’s kind of what happened. He had a lot of people from Notre Dame to other schools reaching out to him as his name got out there and people started watching him.”

The rest is history.

The Tigers were able to seal his verbal pledge right after he took his official visit and he later put pen to paper and officially became a Clemson signee earlier this week. Swinney knows that Clemson was fortunate to be able to get a prospect like Turner this late in the game.

“It’s just amazing, to be honest with you, how that all came about,” Swinney said. “All I can tell you is that’s kind of a God thing because that’s kind of how it happened for Nolan because we weren’t recruiting Nolan.”

This past season put Cole on the map. He was named first-team All-South Metro as an athlete after recording 42 catches for 581 yards and seven touchdowns. He averaged 19.5 yards per punt return and 34.5 yards per kickoff returning, finishing his senior season with 1,160 all-purpose yards.

“We’re pumped about him,” Grisham said during Clemson’s National Signing Day show on Wednesday. “You watch his film and you see why we want him. It’s not just because he’s Nolan’s brother. That’s what people are gonna say. He’s a phenomenal receiver that’s gonna be able to continue to grow and develop.”

The minute you turn on the tape, you realize that Cole is more than just Nolan Turner’s brother. Sure, he’s a legacy recruit, but you’d be selling him short by pigeonholing him to that moniker. He’s a legitimate prospect.

While it may kill his older brother just a bit to hear this, Cole is a faster, bigger athlete than Nolan was coming out of Vestavia Hills. According to Swinney, Cole is twitchy, long, has great ball skills and is a big-time athlete. At the same time, he’s also a big-time basketball player.

Just like Nolan, Clemson plans on “throwing his butt in the weight room for a year,” according to Swinney.

“Man, just watching his tape, you can quickly see that he has a great skill set,” Grisham said via Turner’s official Clemson bio. “He’s 6-2, 180-pounds with more growing to go. “He’s a guy that’s always played basketball his entire life, but what you see is not near the finished product that you have in Cole Turner.”

“He’s got great speed, great length and so as an outside receiver, he can run past you and he can finish those 50/50 balls down the field. What I love most is that he’s tough, he’s gritty. He can return kickoffs and punts. He’s great with the ball in his hands. We’re thrilled to have him join our squad this summer and get rolling with us.”

Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!

 

Grisham gives update on status of injured wide receivers

During Clemson Football’s National Signing Day show on Wednesday from the Allen N. Reeves Football Complex, Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham joined Clemson director of broadcasting Don Munson and gave an update on the injury status of …

During Clemson Football’s National Signing Day show on Wednesday from the Allen N. Reeves Football Complex, Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham joined Clemson director of broadcasting Don Munson and gave an update on the injury status of several receivers.

Senior Joseph Ngata, junior E.J. Williams, redshirt sophomore Brannon Spector, sophomore Will Taylor and redshirt freshman Troy Stellato all missed time last season and were a part of the M.A.S.H. unit that was the Tigers’ receiving corps.

The good news is that — with the exception of Taylor, who suffered a season-ending ACL injury in early October — Grisham expects all the aforementioned wideouts to be ready to go come spring practice, which the Tigers will begin March 2.

“Will Taylor won’t be. He’s still recovering from the ACL,” Grisham said. “But everybody else is healthy and moving well and preparing to be ready for the spring.”

Of the aforementioned wideouts, Spector is the only one who missed the entire 2021 season, as he dealt with respiratory challenges.

But Spector, who recently announced that he has decided to reclassify and will be a redshirt sophomore next season, is expected to be full bore for spring practice according to Grisham.

“Spector missed all of last year. But he’s already — I spoke to him a couple days ago — he’s already back in the weight room and doing most everything that guys are doing,” Grisham said. “Maybe the weight he’s pushing and pulling is a little bit lower. Just trying to help ease him in, but we’re expecting him to be full go for the spring.

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

Football assistants receive extensions, raises

Some of Clemson’s football assistants have received contract extensions and raises following recent shakeups to Dabo Swinney’s coaching staff. Cornerbacks coach Mike Reed, defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall, running backs coach C.J. Spiller and …

Some of Clemson’s football assistants have received contract extensions and raises following recent shakeups to Dabo Swinney’s coaching staff.

Cornerbacks coach Mike Reed, defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall, running backs coach C.J. Spiller and receivers coach Tyler Grisham have been extended. Meanwhile, new offensive line coach Thomas Austin also had his contract extension approved by the Clemson University Board of Trustees Compensation Committee on Wednesday.

Austin’s contract as offensive line coach will run will through 2024 and pay him $450,000 annually. Previously an offensive analyst for the Tigers, Austin was promoted to take over for longtime offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell, who retired from coaching after the season and is taking over as director of high school relations and player development

Reed’s salary will increase to $750,000 in his 10th year on Clemson’s staff. Reed, who will double as special teams coordinator next season, will also serve as Clemson’s associate head coach moving forward, a title former defensive line coach Todd Bates held before recently leaving to join Brent Venables’ staff at Oklahoma.

Grisham, who’s also taking over for newly promoted offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter as the program’s recruiting coordinator, had his contract extended one year with a new salary of $450,000. Grisham has been coaching the Tigers’ wideouts since 2020.

Hall also had his contract extended by a year and will make $625,000 next season while Spiller will make $450,000 with the same extension. Hall has been on Clemson’s staff since 2015, the last four seasons as defensive ends coach. Spiller was promoted to running backs coach last year after initially returning to the program as a graduate assistant in 2020.

This story will be updated.

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

Clemson names recruiting coordinator

The Clemson football program has named its next recruiting coordinator. Clemson director of broadcasting Don Munson announced during Clemson Football’s National Signing Day show from the Allen N. Reeves Football Complex that Tyler Grisham is the …

The Clemson football program has named its next recruiting coordinator.

Clemson director of broadcasting Don Munson announced during Clemson Football’s National Signing Day show from the Allen N. Reeves Football Complex that Tyler Grisham is the Tigers’ new recruiting coordinator.

Grisham replaces Clemson’s former recruiting coordinator, Todd Bates, who of course left Clemson in January to join Brent Venables’ staff at Oklahoma as its associate head coach and co-defensive coordinator.

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

Coach Speak: Clemson ‘getting a steal’ in new WR signee

Vestavia Hills (Ala.) High School three-star wide receiver Cole Turner officially signed with Clemson on Wedneday. Cole, of course, is the younger brother of longtimeC lemson safety Nolan Turner, who just finished up his final season of eligibility …

Vestavia Hills (Ala.) High School three-star wide receiver Cole Turner officially signed with Clemson on Wedneday. Cole, of course, is the younger brother of longtimeC lemson safety Nolan Turner, who just finished up his final season of eligibility in The Valley.

We spoke with Sean Calhoun, who previously coached Turner at Vestavia Hills and has since become the head coach at Colquitt County High School (Moultrie, Ga.)

While Calhoun is no longer the head coach at Vestavia Hills, he took the time Tuesday afternoon to speak with The Clemson Insider regarding Cole, who officially put pen to paper and became a Clemson signee on National Signing Day.

“They know what they’re getting,” Calhoun said. “They’re getting a kid who’s gonna have a chip on his shoulder, who’s gonna be hungry. He’s an extremely hard worker, a good student, a good kid and he’s a really, really good football player. He’s athletic. He’s got a super high ceiling and it’s just one of those things that they’re getting a steal, in my opinion.”

The quicker Cole can grasp the playbook, the quicker he’ll get on the field. Of course, he has to make plays to get out there on the field, but he knows that he’s gonna have to come in and compete once he arrives in the summer.

Clemson handed out a New Year’s Day offer to Turner and he was on campus nearly two weeks later. He verbally pledged to the Tigers on the Sunday of his official visit. Calhoun said that it was definitely one of those situations where if things went well, he knew Cole was going to probably commit, but he didn’t know that he’d be 100% done, because he originally wanted to wait until NSD.

It felt like home and that was that. Calhoun detailed what ultimately went into Cole’s decision to commit to Clemson.

“Cole had went up for his official visit and obviously, it was everything that he had hoped for and more,” Calhoun said. “Obviously, he’s been there multiple times, but that’s been as a fan and as a supporter of his brother. It’s totally different when you go and you’re the main attraction. He’s never been the main attraction before and he was and he loved every part of it. Loved the family culture up there, loved the coaches. 

“He’s hit it off with Coach Grisham and also the family has known Coach Swinney for a while, but he’s gonna spend more time with the assistants. And, it was home. When you go on those visits, a lot of people have nice places and facilities, but it’s the feeling that you get and he went up there and he felt that it was home.”

Being that he’s already sent Kevin Swint to go play for Swinney, Calhoun had nothing but positive things to say about Clemson. After spending time with Clemson’s head coach and getting to know his staff from Swint’s recruitment, Calhoun confidently said that he would send his own son there.

While he has since moved on from Vestavia Hills and won’t be in attendance to watch Cole make it official, there are few people better suited to talk about the Clemson-bound three-star wideout. With that being said, what can Calhoun tell Clemson fans about who Cole is as a player and more importantly, a person, on and off the field?

“You’re gonna get a kid that’s gonna make Clemson better in the locker room, weight room, the hallways of the university and on the field,” he said. “That’s just the type of personality and type of kid he is. He makes people around him better. Phenomenal teammate, which I think is one of the best qualities as a player that you can give. That doesn’t take any talent. That doesn’t take any special ability to be able to be a great teammate and that’s what you’re gonna get.

“I think he’s gonna eventually make plays for them. I think he’s gonna help them win football games. But, he’s a great kid. He’s gonna be in the community at some point, doing community service and this and that. The sky’s the limit for him and, hopefully, the fans will appreciate what they’re getting.”

Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!

 

Tigers ‘helped themselves a lot’ with newly offered WR during elite junior day visit

A priority wide receiver traveled to Clemson this past weekend for the program’s Elite Junior Day. It was Lakeland (Fla.) High School four-star WR Tyler Williams’ first time on campus and he wanted to see if Clemson would potentially be a fit in his …

A priority wide receiver traveled to Clemson this past weekend for the program’s Elite Junior Day.

It was Lakeland (Fla.) High School four-star WR Tyler Williams’ first time on campus and he wanted to see if Clemson would potentially be a fit in his recruitment.

Williams returned to the Sunshine State on Sunday with a Clemson offer in hand and a better feel and understanding for the coaches and the program itself.

“It was great,” he told The Clemson Insider regarding his junior day visit. “It was a good opportunity and, of course, I got offered and got to see a lot and what position I could be put in if I were to go to Clemson.

“I would be put in a great position. You see the numbers of wide receivers being produced through Clemson, it’s very impressive. Even Coach Dabo, he’s also a receivers coach. For the most part, he was letting me know how they run practices and things like that in my position group.”

For Williams, it felt “great” to earn a Clemson offer. Prior to this weekend, Clemson had only offered four wide receivers in the 2023 recruiting class and two of them were on campus this weekend: Edison (Miami, Fla.) four-star Nathaniel Joseph and Rolesville (Raleigh, N.C.) four-star Noah Rogers.

“All of us spent a fair amount of time with (Coach Grisham). On the bus, we all sat with each other,” Williams said. “We ate with each other. We went to the meeting room together. We were joking and laughing because out of us three, I’m the most photogenic. We was taking pictures and they kind of didn’t know what to do.”

Joseph verbally pledged to the Tigers on Sept. 11, 2021, while Clemson offered Rogers and Hickory Ridge (Harrisburg, N.C.) four-star wideout Christian Hamilton on Jan. 12 and Christmas Day, respectively. While the Tigers offered the nation’s No. 1 wide receiver in American Heritage (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) five-star, Brandon Inniss, he hasn’t returned to campus since he camped at the Dabo Swinney Camp this past summer.

According to Williams, Clemson told him that they are looking to take up to three wide receivers in his class because they’re likely to be losing a number of wideouts after the 2022 season.

“That lets me know that I’m one of their top guys that they’re looking for coming into next year,” he said.

That was evident even before this weekend as Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham made numerous trips to Lakeland High School since December 2021. Williams finally had a chance to have some one-on-one face time with Grisham and even Swinney.

“It was great. We talked a lot,” Williams said of Grisham. “We was texting before, but meeting him in person and meeting his family, I was able to get a feel for who he really is. Coach Dabo, we also talked a lot. He let me know things, like an offer to come to Clemson is not an everyday thing. They don’t offer a lot of guys. Also, Coach Grisham let me know things that I need to work on this upcoming season.”

Williams said that his first visit to Clemson exceeded his expectations and was actually more than he thought it would be. His mother and his position coach at Lakeland tagged along for this weekend’s visit. According to Williams, they loved everything Clemson had to offer. 

As far as a return visit to Clemson is concerned, Williams said he has to work out his schedule and determine if he can make it back up to The Valley in either the spring or the summer. If not, he’ll definitely be up for a game day and hopes to take an official visit to Clemson at some point during the 2022 season.

“They helped themselves a lot in my recruitment, I would say,” Williams said. “They’re somewhere in my favorite of all my offers I got, I’d say they’re somewhere in my top-10.”

Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!

Big-time Sunshine State receiver announces Clemson offer

A big-time wide receiver prospect in the class of 2023 announced an offer from Clemson on Saturday afternoon. Lakeland (Fla.) High School four-star WR Tyler Williams, who is on campus for Clemson’s Elite Junior Day, reported the offer on social …

A big-time wide receiver prospect in the class of 2023 announced an offer from Clemson on Saturday afternoon.

Lakeland (Fla.) High School four-star WR Tyler Williams, who is on campus for Clemson’s Elite Junior Day, reported the offer on social media.

 

Williams is ranked as the No. 28 wide receiver prospect in the 2023 recruiting class, while 247Sports ranks him as the No. 32 player at his position in his class.

Across his junior campaign, Williams caught 18 of 23 targets with 700 yards receiving and 13 total touchdowns.

“It means a lot,” Williams told The Clemson Insider about a potential offer earlier this week. “I know they don’t offer a lot of guys, especially like down this way. I only know one or two other people that have that offer in the state. Coach [Grisham] said he’s only taking three receivers in my class and I’m one of the three that he wants. So, that lets me know if they like me or not if they potentially offer me in the future.”

Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!

Priority WR ready for Elite Junior Day, to ‘see if Clemson is a fit’

A priority wide receiver target in the 2023 recruiting class announced that he will be at Clemson this weekend. Lakeland (Fla.) High School four-star WR Tyler Williams will be in attendance for Clemson’s Elite Junior Day. I will be at The Clemson …

A priority wide receiver target in the 2023 recruiting class announced that he will be at Clemson this weekend.

Lakeland (Fla.) High School four-star WR Tyler Williams will be in attendance for Clemson’s Elite Junior Day.

“I got invited about two weeks ago, the last time Coach [Grisham] was down here and was able to visit schools,” Williams told The Clemson Insider. “Really just trying to see the facilities, meet with Coach Dabo and Coach Grisham and see if Clemson is a fit for me.

“Me and Coach Grisham, we talk a lot. He’s been recruiting me for a long time now. I don’t have an offer from them, but they’re just recruiting me.”

After Thursday, Clemson will have made three trips to his school in the course of two weeks. Grisham swung by Lakeland on Friday, Jan. 14, and was in attendance for Williams’ basketball game on Wednesday, Jan. 19. Today, Clemson defensive tackles coach and run game coordinator Nick Eason is also supposed to stop by Lakeland High School.

“It means a lot,” Williams said. “I know they don’t offer a lot of guys, especially like down this way. I only know one or two other people that have that offer in the state. Coach [Grisham] said he’s only taking three receivers in my class and I’m one of the three that he wants. So, that lets me know if they like me or not if they potentially offer me in the future.”

Edison (Miami, Fla.) four-star wide receiver Nathaniel Joseph is Clemson’s lone verbal pledge in the 2023 recruiting class. Joseph (5-10, 170) ranks as the No. 14 wide receiver and No. 121 overall prospect in the country in the class of 2023, per 247Sports’ rankings.

So that leaves two open receiver scholarships and Williams very well could be one of them.

How would Williams say his relationship with Grisham has developed over the past month or so?

“Great. We talk almost every day,” Williams said. “He asks me about my basketball games. Even things outside of football, we almost talk on the daily.”

This weekend, Williams is looking forward to having some face-to-face time with Grisham, so he can ask him some different questions and see what type of person he is. 

What is Williams hoping to get out of this weekend’s visit?

“How will me going to Clemson help me? From the football side and life after football,” he said. “Of course, I want to make it to the league, but I want to see how I can set myself when football stops.”

While an offer potentially can happen, according to Williams, Grisham really just wanted to see if he would be willing to leave the state of Florida and see if Clemson would be a fit for him.

Williams has taken visits to Miami, Florida State and now he’s going to Clemson. In the near future, he’ll probably be taking visits to Notre Dame and Stanford. As far as his recruitment is concerned, Williams is leaving his options wide open, but he’s hoping that some of these visits will help put things into further perspective.

Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!

Grisham checks up on future Tigers, other recruits

While out and about on the recruiting trail this week, Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham checked up on a few future Tigers, among other recruits. On Tuesday, Grisham traveled to Dutch Fork High School (Irmo, S.C.) to attend one of Antonio …

While out and about on the recruiting trail this week, Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham checked up on a few future Tigers, among other recruits.

On Tuesday, Grisham traveled to Dutch Fork High School (Irmo, S.C.) to attend one of Antonio Williams’ basketball games.

Williams, a highly regarded wide receiver rated as a top-100 player nationally by multiple outlets, signed with Clemson in December and plans to enroll this summer.

On Wednesday, Grisham also stopped by Greenville (S.C.) High School, which produced a pair of 2022 Clemson signees in offensive lineman Collin Sadler and tight end Josh Sapp.

Like Williams, Sadler and Sapp signed with the Tigers in December. Sadler is already at Clemson as an early enrollee, while Sapp is expected to enroll this summer.

A couple of other prospects from Greenville High on Grisham and Clemson’s radar are 2024 wide receiver Mazeo Bennett and 2023 wide receiver Tyler Brown.

On Wednesday, Grisham was also at Florence (Ala.) High School, where 2023 five-star cornerback Jahlil Hurley attends.

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

Promising Philadelphia WR wants offer from ‘favorite college’ Clemson

As part of its 2021 signing class, Clemson inked former four-star linebacker and St. Joseph’s Prep School (Philadelphia, Pa.) product Jeremiah Trotter, Jr. – the son of Jeremiah Trotter, Sr., a four-time Pro Bowler who played 12 NFL seasons for the …

As part of its 2021 signing class, Clemson inked former four-star linebacker and St. Joseph’s Prep School (Philadelphia, Pa.) product Jeremiah Trotter, Jr. – the son of Jeremiah Trotter, Sr., a four-time Pro Bowler who played 12 NFL seasons for the Eagles, Redskins and Buccaneers from 1998-2009.

Now, the Tigers are targeting another talented linebacker from St. Joseph’s Prep – Trotter, Jr.’s younger brother, Josiah, a four-star prospect in the 2023 class who named Clemson one of his top eight schools earlier this week, along with Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech and West Virginia.

Another standout prospect from St. Joseph’s drawing early interest from Clemson is David Washington, Jr., a 6-foot, 185-pound sophomore wide receiver in the class of 2024.

Washington has built a bond with his teammate Josiah and hopes to travel back to Tiger Town with Josiah moving forward to see and learn more about Clemson.

“Me and Josiah have a good relationship on and off the field,” Washington told The Clemson Insider. “I go work out at his house sometimes. And he is a good teammate on and off the field. He is a leader, we look up to him. And since he just dropped his top 8 with Clemson being one of the schools, I want to go on a visit with him to Clemson.”

Washington was on campus at Clemson last summer, when he competed at the Dabo Swinney Camp.

“It was great,” he said, reflecting on his experience at the camp. “They were my favorite college. It was a good experience for me. I got to go against top players in the nation over there, and I did good. I played against seniors. I went in there as a sophomore. They moved me up, so I think I did great.”

St. Joseph’s Prep School (Philadelphia, Pa.) 2024 WR David Washington Jr. (photo from Washington Jr. (@dwjr25) on Twitter)

When he worked out with Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham at the Swinney Camp, Grisham let Washington know that he’s firmly on the Tigers’ future recruiting radar for receivers in the 2024 class.

“He said he liked me a lot,” Washington said of Grisham. “He said I’m definitely going to be one of the players they recruit in the long run, and he said he wants me to get back up there for a visit and everything, come down for a game. I didn’t really get a chance to because of our season and everything. But I definitely want to get back up there.”

Washington thinks highly of who Grisham is, both on the field as a coach and simply off the field as an individual.

“He’s a good coach. He’s a great person, too,” Washington said. “He was being straight up with me. If I did something bad, he would tell me that. If I did something good, he would tell me that. He cares. He was showing a good relationship with me and my dad that was with me at the camp. He’s a good person and a good coach.”

Whenever he makes it back to Clemson, Washington is looking to get a better feel for the school, campus and coaching staff, as well as get a taste of the Tigers’ famous pregame tradition, running down the hill.

“I just want to know more about the school, take a visit around the campus and everything,” he said. “I want to run down the hill because that’s one of the best entrances in college football. That’s very nice. I just want to get to know the coaches and everything. That’s my favorite college and everything, so I do want (an offer from) them.”

Tennessee, Kentucky, Penn State, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Boston College, West Virginia and Temple have all offered Washington, while schools such as Ole Miss and Rutgers are showing interest along with Clemson.

Adding Clemson to his offer list down the road is a dream for Washington.

“I’ve been liking them for a while, for years now,” he said. “So, just growing up, showing how good they are, going against the best schools, against Alabama, all that, going against the top players in the nation… It’s a dream come true for anybody that can go there. I just want to be one of them that get that.”

What will the school that lands Washington’s commitment be getting in him as a player in the future?

“I feel like they’re going to get the best in me,” he said. “I feel like I’m a competitor. I love to compete. Even if I lose, I get back up, I still ball out, show out. They’re going to get somebody good. Wherever I commit to, they’re going to get a great player.”

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