Tag: Tyler Grisham

The latest on Four-star Greene on decision day

It’s decision day for a priority recruit in the 2022 class. St. Christopher’s School (Richmond, Va.) four-star wide receiver Andre Greene, Jr. is set to announce his college decision at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. Greene, coming off a Clemson official …

It’s decision day for a priority recruit in the 2022 class.

St. Christopher’s School (Richmond, Va.) four-star wide receiver Andre Greene, Jr. is set to announce his college decision at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. Greene, coming off a Clemson official visit this past weekend, will be deciding between the Tigers, North Carolina and Georgia.

Clemson appeared to have made up some ground this weekend, spending a significant amount of time with the talented receiver. We’ve spoken to multiple sources, who have detailed Greene’s experience, believing that he thoroughly enjoyed himself and felt like he was made a priority throughout the weekend.

Five-star quarterback Cade Klubnik and the rest of Clemson’s commits feel like they put a strong foot forward with Greene this weekend. Klubnik has been recruiting his close friend hard for a while now. He was parked right next to Greene in the stands for the entirety of Clemson’s season-opener vs. Georgia in Charlotte.

“I feel really good,” Klubnik told The Clemson Insider regarding Clemson’s chances of landing Greene.  “I think he had a great time. I love Andre. He’s a fun, energetic guy, but man, he’s a really, really good football player. He’ll be able to help out a ton. I’m feeling good about him, so we’re really hoping he makes the decision.”

Greene has been careful with his recruitment. He’s kept tonight’s decision very closed vest. Clemson’s coaches and commits have kept close contact ever since he departed back to Virginia and have continued their full-court press pursuit of Greene.

“Andre told us he really enjoyed his time, but I’m hoping that means he is coming home,” Greenville (S.C.) three-star tight end commit Josh Sapp told TCI.

Clemson did all it could this past weekend and certainly gave Greene something to think about. We are not sure if this past weekend’s events were enough for Clemson to inch past UNC, who entered Greene’s official visit weekend as the favorite.  We wouldn’t be surprised to see this one go either way, but we aren’t in a position to put a sunny forecast on this one at this time.

If Greene does commit to Chapel Hill, it would open up the door for Clemson to offer Dutch Fork (Irmo, S.C.) four-star wide receiver, Antonio Williams.

Over the past month Clemson has turned up their attention for Williams. Prior to Clemson’s 30-24 win over Louisville, wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham spent that Friday night on the recruiting trail, watching Williams from Dutch Fork’s sidelines, alongside freshman receiver Will Taylor.

Of course, that’s contingent on what Greene decides tonight. In any event, Clemson pulled out all the stops. It just might not have been enough to unseat Mack Brown and Co. as the favorites for Greene’s recruitment.

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Rising local athlete ‘enjoyed everything’ about Clemson visit

A local athlete whose stock is on the rise left Clemson highly impressed after his first recruiting trip to Tiger Town two weekends ago. Greenville High School’s Mazeo Bennett, a speedy and explosive wide receiver/defensive back in the 2024 class, …

A local athlete whose stock is on the rise left Clemson highly impressed after his first recruiting trip to Tiger Town two weekends ago.

Greenville High School’s Mazeo Bennett, a speedy and explosive wide receiver/defensive back in the 2024 class, attended the Tigers’ 30-20 victory over Florida State at Death Valley on Oct. 30 as an unofficial visitor.

“I enjoyed everything about the visit!” Bennett told The Clemson Insider. “The fans, and the tradition they are built on is what really stood out to me!”

Through nine games as a sophomore this season, according to MaxPreps, Bennett registered 17 receptions for 450 yards and three touchdowns to go with a couple of interceptions.

Coastal Carolina gave Bennett his first offer in June. South Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia Tech all extended offers last month, while Clemson is another school that has been showing interest in the rising recruit.

Bennett spent time during the visit with receivers coach Tyler Grisham and safeties coach Mickey Conn, as well as defensive coordinator Brent Venables, and Bennett believes the Tigers are looking at him as both a receiver and DB.

“I spoke a lot with Coach Grisham and some with Coach Conn,” Bennett said. “But mainly Coach Grisham was telling me to be patient, and continue to grind! He said they do their due diligence when they are recruiting and that process takes time!”

“I think they are recruiting me as both… I don’t know the specifics,” Bennett added. “But I also talked to Coach Venables.”

Bennett has traveled throughout this season to see games at all the schools that have offered him, along with App State, Notre Dame and Clemson. He has his eye on returning to Clemson for another visit at some point moving forward.

“I definitely wouldn’t mind taking another trip back to Tiger Town,” he said. “I hope to make it to another game or visit back during the offseason.”

Bennett is teammates at Greenville High with two class of 2022 Clemson commits – offensive lineman Collin Sadler and tight end Josh Sapp.

Considering that Bennett is good buddies with both of those future Tigers, and the fact that Clemson is so close to home, an offer from the program would certainly have a big impact on Bennett’s recruitment should he receive an offer down the road.

Right now, though, Bennett is just focused on putting his head down, working hard, and showing the Tigers and other college football programs what he can do as a player.

“I don’t really want to boost my confidence when it comes to getting an offer from Clemson by saying this or saying that… but I know what I can control, which is grinding my butt off day in and day out – for not only Clemson to see but for the whole country!” Bennett said. “An offer from Clemson would weigh heavy, especially with two of my close teammates committed and it being my hometown school!”

Bennett has a tie to the ACC team that Clemson beat last week, as his brother, Zykiesis Cannon, was a defensive back at Louisville from 2014-17.

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Top Volunteer State athlete: Clemson is ‘my dream school’

Whether you’re talking about football or basketball, this class of 2024 prospects is a name worth knowing. The Clemson Insider caught Webb School (Knoxville, TN.) ATH Brandon Winton, Jr., who was on campus for a game day visit last weekend. Winton …

Whether you’re talking about football or basketball, this class of 2024 prospects is a name worth knowing.

The Clemson Insider caught Webb School (Knoxville, TN.) ATH Brandon Winton, Jr., who was on campus for a game day visit last weekend. Winton was in attendance for Clemson’s 30-20 win over Florida State on Saturday, Oct. 30 at Memorial Stadium.

Winton detailed his first game day experience in Death Valley with TCI.

“It was super good,” he said. “I mean, it was a crazy atmosphere. The coaches were super good to me. Everything just went really well.”

What was the highlight of Winton’s experience in Tiger Town?

“Probably when I got to meet Coach Dabo [Swinney] and Mrs. Swinney,” he added. 

Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham has been Winton’s main recruiter so far. They’re still in the beginning stages of their relationship, but it’s clear that Grisham has already made an impression on The Volunteer State native.

“It was real good,” Winton said. “He was basically just letting me know that he’s really interested in me right now. I’m young. I just got to get better and I have a lot of time to get better. It’s gonna be a process with them and me and us just building that relationship. Basically, they just were like ‘Keep grinding and keep staying in touch,’ and they’re gonna keep going with me.”

Winton likes how Clemson rotates its receivers. He likes how the Tigers are willing to throw everybody in the mix at wide receiver if they need to. It also means a lot to him to be recruited by WRU.

“That’s my dream school,” he said of Clemson. “So that’s big, first and foremost, and just the receivers they’ve had in the past and how they succeed there. They’re big on getting receivers to the league, to the next level. That’s real big.”

The eventual four-star prospect currently holds offers from Power 5 programs like Boston College, Pitt and Tennessee

Winton doesn’t know whether he will play football or basketball at the next level. The 6-foot-2 combo guard is along for the ride and has 2.5 more years of high school before he has to ultimately decide between the two.

“I feel like I’m a good team player,” Winton said when asked to describe himself as a player. “I’m gonna get after it. And I’m just gonna do whatever it takes for my team to win.

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Which prospect did Tyler Grisham check out Friday night?

Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham hit the recruiting trail Friday night. Ahead of Clemson’s Saturday night matchup against Louisville, Grisham stayed in the Palmetto State and was in attendance for Dutch Fork’s (Irmo, S.C.) game against …

Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham hit the recruiting trail Friday night.

Ahead of Clemson’s Saturday night matchup against Louisville, Grisham stayed in the Palmetto State and was in attendance for Dutch Fork’s (Irmo, S.C.) game against Socastee (Myrtle Beach, S.C.).

Grisham is there to see 2022 four-star receiver, Antonio Williams, his mother confirmed to The Clemson Insider. Additionally, Clemson freshman receiver/quarterback Will Taylor was also back at his alma mater, alongside Grisham on the sidelines.

Taylor is out for the season after tearing his ACL during Clemson’s 19-13 win over Boston College on Saturday, Oct. 2.

As for Williams, 247Sports considers him the No. 19 wide receiver and No. 125 overall prospect regardless of opposition in the 2022 class.

While Clemson hasn’t offered just yet, Williams holds an impressive list of offers, which includes schools like Notre Dame, Florida State, Georgia, Auburn and Ole Miss, which make up his top-6.

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Priority Clemson WR target nearing commitment decision

A commitment decision is on the horizon for Clemson’s priority wide receiver target in the 2022 class. But first, before he chooses a college to call home in the coming years, Richmond (Va.) St. Christopher’s School four-star Andre Greene Jr. plans …

A commitment decision is on the horizon for Clemson’s priority wide receiver target in the 2022 class. 

But first, before he chooses a college to call home in the coming years, Richmond (Va.) St. Christopher’s School four-star Andre Greene Jr. plans to take a couple more visits. 

One of those is an official visit to Clemson the weekend of Nov. 12-14. Because St. Christopher’s will have a playoff game that weekend, Greene won’t be able to attend the Tigers’ game against UConn on Saturday, Nov. 13. 

Still, the official visit will be an important one for both Greene and the Tigers as he approaches making a commitment. 

“Looking forward to getting back to Clemson next month,” Greene told The Clemson Insider. “Because of my school football schedule, I won’t be able to make the game. However, I feel it is important to get back there just to sit down with the coaching staff one last time before I make my final decision.”

Speaking of Clemson’s staff, Greene (6-3, 180) continues to stay in close contact with wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham as well as head man Dabo Swinney.

Greene and Swinney actually caught up again this week via a FaceTime call on Tuesday night. 

“They just let me know how they love what I’m doing and how impressed they are with my ball skills,” Greene said of what he’s been hearing from Swinney and Grisham lately. “We talk about my playmaking abilities and how I would be a great fit for the Clemson program.”

Besides Clemson, the lone trip Greene is looking to make before his decision is an unofficial visit to Georgia that will likely occur the weekend before the Clemson visit.

Greene and his family had a scheduled video call with UGA head coach Kirby Smart on Thursday evening. 

“I’m working on a plan to get back to UGA also,” Greene said. “I’ve been talking a lot over the past few months with (wide receivers) coach (Cortez) Hankton and coach Smart.”

Along with Clemson and Georgia, North Carolina has been the other top contender for Greene, and he returned to Chapel Hill at the beginning of this month for the Tar Heels’ game against Duke. 

Greene hasn’t yet settled on a specific decision date, but a commitment from the star wideout is right around the corner. 

“I haven’t narrowed down an actual date just yet. But a decision is likely to come sometime in the next few weeks,” he said. 

Where do the Tigers stand with Greene heading into the official visit next month?

“Clemson is definitely one of my top choices,” he said. “It’s such a difficult decision because each school has so much to offer.”

According to the 247Sports Composite rankings, Greene is the No. 9 wide receiver and No. 71 overall prospect in the 2022 class. He is ranked as high as the No. 5 wideout and No. 36 overall prospect in his class by Rivals.

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Rising in-state athlete ‘more than excited’ for first recruiting trip to Clemson

A talented local athlete seeing his recruiting stock rise this season is Mazeo Bennett, a sophomore in the class of 2024 from Greenville High School. South Carolina, Coastal Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia Tech have all extended offers to Bennett …

A talented local athlete seeing his recruiting stock rise this season is Mazeo Bennett, a sophomore in the class of 2024 from Greenville High School.

South Carolina, Coastal Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia Tech have all extended offers to Bennett this month, while Clemson is among other schools showing interest in the speedy and explosive wide receiver/defensive back.

Bennett (6-0, 165) has made visits this season to check out all of the schools that have offered him, and this Saturday, he will make an unofficial visit to Clemson for the Florida State game. While he has been to a few games at Death Valley in the past, it will be his first recruiting trip to Tiger Town.

“I’m more than excited to be in Death Valley this weekend!” he said to The Clemson Insider.

Bennett’s brother, Zykiesis Cannon, was a defensive back at Louisville from 2014-17, so Bennett has seen his brother play at Clemson and already has a good feel for what the environment is like during games in The Valley.

“They are intense!” he said. “And that’s something I’ve always loved about them!”

Multiple members of Clemson’s staff have followed Bennett on Twitter over the past few weeks – including wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham, defensive coordinator Brent Venables and safeties coach Mickey Conn – and the Tigers invited Bennett to Saturday’s game through his coach.

“He informed me that they were really interested in me,” Bennett said.

Through seven games of his sophomore season, Bennett has 416 yards receiving and three touchdowns on 14 catches to go with a couple of interceptions.

“How I would describe myself as a player is a dog,” he said. “Somebody who could play both sides of the ball with no questions asked. As a wide receiver I would describe myself as a playmaker, someone who could turn nothing into something.”

Bennett is teammates at Greenville High with two class of 2022 Clemson commits: offensive lineman Collin Sadler and tight end Josh Sapp.

“They are like my best friends, especially Josh Sapp,” Bennett said. “Me and him talk every day. He has become my brother for life.”

Like Sapp and Sadler, Bennett hopes to one day have the chance to play for Clemson as well.

“An offer from Clemson would mean a lot,” he said. “Two of my teammates already being committed there, I kind of already know what to expect. Which is a school that will push you to be the best you but not only as a player but as a man.”

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Collins: Tigers frustrated but not splintering

Through Clemson’s first seven games struggles amongst the wide receivers have been pronounced. According to StatBroadcast, in Saturday’s loss at Pittsburgh the Tigers dropped 17 passes which certainly did not help matters. Beaux Collins caught five …

Through Clemson’s first seven games struggles amongst the wide receivers have been pronounced.

According to StatBroadcast, in Saturday’s loss at Pittsburgh the Tigers dropped 17 passes which certainly did not help matters.

Beaux Collins caught five passes for 23 yards against the Panthers. He self-diagnosed the problems in the room and reiterated that the drops do not indicate a lack of hard work or poor instruction by wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham.

“He’s really telling us to have intense focus,” Collins said on Monday. “A lot of the reasons why we have had drops and things like that are because we don’t start the play with the right intensity. So just finishing the play has been the main focus in the receiving group.”

“We stay after practice and do extra work on the jugs machine, we just have to put more effort into the little things like that and finishing plays,” he continued.

Collins said the lack of focus manifests in trying to make plays before the ball arrives which takes their eyes off the play and leads to drops.

But the freshman’s main goal this week is to focus on his own deficiencies to make every catch and improve his blocking.

“For me I would just say finishing plays and helping my teammates trust me as far as coming down with the ball every time the ball is thrown to me,” Collins said. “I could do a better job of blocking on the perimeter, so I just need to work on finishing plays.”

Clemson’s current position in the middle of the ACC and outside of contention for the College Football Playoff or a major bowl frustrates Collins. But he knows the team still shows up committed to the task at hand, beating Florida State on Saturday.

“I would say it’s frustration as far as we all need to get our job done and execute,” Collins said. “But we are not splintering at all, we are staying together, every day at practice we have great practices, great energy, and things like that so there’s no splintering.”

Clemson hosts the Seminoles on Saturday at Memorial Stadium with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m.

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Grisham keeping tabs on fast-rising Alabama prospect

This fast-rising offensive line prospect has received interest from many big-time programs across the country, including Clemson. Florence (Ala.) Mars Hill Bible School three-star offensive tackle Koby Keenum recently caught up with The Clemson …

This fast-rising offensive line prospect has received interest from many big-time programs across the country, including Clemson.

Florence (Ala.) Mars Hill Bible School three-star offensive tackle Koby Keenum recently caught up with The Clemson Insider regarding his Clemson interest and how his recruitment has taken off since Sept 1., when colleges could start directly contacting high school juniors.

“They’ve been sending me a lot of stuff in the mail recently about how much they like seeing me on the field,” Keenum told TCI. “They message me on Twitter, the Clemson Football page, all kinds of graphics and stuff.”

According to Keenum, Clemson wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham has been talking to his head coach at Mars Hills Bible School, Darrell Higgins, asking for his transcripts and things like that.

“I haven’t gotten on with [Grisham] yet like I said, my head coach has been talking to him,” Keenum said. “I think soon we’ll be getting on the phone.”

What type of feedback has Keenum been getting from Clemson?

“They said they liked me,” he said. “They liked how I moved. They liked how I competed. After I want to say sometime in June or July, they got all my information, address and all that. They said they were gonna get in touch with me, that they really like how I play the game.”

Keenum camped at the Dabo Swinney Camp this past summer and performed well alongside and against top competition. He also was able to take a visit around Clemson’s campus.

“It went really well. I won a lot of 1-on-1 battles, o-line vs. d-line,” Keenum said. “I think I performed really well. That’s what caught the Clemson coach’s eyes, I think, mainly me competing well with those other top guys.”

“It’s beautiful up there,” he added. “The water around the campus and everything. It’s just really beautiful.”

He had an opportunity to be coached hands-on by Robbie Caldwell at the camp and spoke with Clemson’s long-time offensive line coach about his overall performance.

“He was saying how much he liked me,” Keenum said. “He was one of the main ones I was talking to after the camp, just about how much he liked me and how well I play the game.”

Keenum indicated that he has to look into making it back up to Clemson for a game this season. He hasn’t put too much thought into it but said that he’ll “for sure” make time to get back up to The Valley this spring.

Though, he has been on game day visits to Alabama, Auburn, Penn State and Mississippi State. He’ll also be heading to Arkansas, Notre Dame and back to Tuscaloosa for another Alabama game.

“It’s been pretty neat, getting love from all these coaches, especially from multiple schools, big-time schools like Alabama and Auburn,” Keenum said. “It’s been pretty neat, honestly, getting to see the coaches again in person, instead of having to wait because of COVID and not do anything.”

Since Sept. 1, Keenum’s phone has been lighting up like a Christmas tree. When he woke up that morning, he had 80 or 90 direct messages on Twitter that he hadn’t opened up. At any given time, he could have over 100 messages in his inbox from either a college or a coach.

Keenum is focusing most, if not all of his attention on Mars Hill’s season at the moment. While he’s keeping constant contact with college coaches, he’s looking forward to talking more consistently with them after his junior season and seeing what they all have to say, he said.

While he’d like to be committed by the start of his senior season, Keenum specified that he wants to be completely comfortable with his decision before he makes it. His goal, though, is to be committed before the season.

Keenum plays tackle for his high school, but he understands that because of his height, he’ll likely have to play guard at the next level.

“I’ve been playing guard at these camps this past summer and I think I competed real well,” he said. “I’m feeling real comfortable in that guard position.”

Keenum ranks as the No. 39 offensive tackle in the 2023 class, per Rivals.

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4-star Carolinas WR: ‘Who wouldn’t want to be at Clemson’

Last month, Clemson assistant coach Tyler Grisham traveled to check out a top prospect from the Tar Heel State on the Tigers’ recruiting radar. Harrisburg (N.C.) Hickory Ridge four-star wide receiver Christian Hamilton showed out with Grisham on …

Last month, Clemson assistant coach Tyler Grisham traveled to check out a top prospect from the Tar Heel State on the Tigers’ recruiting radar.

Harrisburg (N.C.) Hickory Ridge four-star wide receiver Christian Hamilton showed out with Grisham on hand for Hickory Ridge’s game against South Point (Belmont, N.C.) on Sept. 3, when Hamilton hauled in six receptions for 151 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-7 win.

After Grisham paid a visit to see Hamilton, the class of 2023 recruit returned the favor with an unofficial visit to Clemson on Oct. 2 for the Tigers’ 19-13 win over Boston College at Death Valley.

“I enjoyed the game a lot,” he said. “Got to see how they run their offense and how they use their receivers and corners. The atmosphere was crazy. Everywhere was packed and loud.”

Hamilton, a 6-foot, 180-pound junior, has been staying in touch with Grisham regularly and was able to catch up with Clemson’s receivers coach while on campus for the BC game.

Grisham’s message to Hamilton? Stay patient for a potential offer from the Tigers.

“He told me to keep being patient with him,” Hamilton told The Clemson Insider recently, “and he’s excited to see where I’m going with this.”

The highlight of the visit for Hamilton was interacting with Clemson’s head man.

“Getting to talk to Coach Dabo probably was my favorite,” he said.

Hamilton, who also visited Clemson in June, went to North Carolina this past Saturday for its game vs. Miami. In addition to Clemson, he saw a slew of other schools over the summer as well, including Louisville, Texas A&M, South Carolina, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia and Penn State.

All of those programs have offered Hamilton, with the exception of Ohio State and Clemson. As of now, he says his recruitment is “still wide open.”

Hamilton is looking to make his college decision sometime next year, either on his birthday (Oct. 24), his mother’s birthday (Oct. 14) or his dad’s birthday (Dec. 29).

An offer from the Tigers moving forward would make them a major contender for Hamilton’s commitment.

“Who wouldn’t want to be at Clemson,” he said. “All I’mma say.”

Hamilton is ranked as a top-100 national prospect in the 2023 class by ESPN (No. 72), Rivals (No. 97) and the 247Sports Composite (No. 93), the latter of which considers him the No. 15 wide receiver in his class.

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Cousin of Clemson legend carving out his own path down at IMG

The Clemson Insider checked back in with the cousin of a Clemson legend. Just like his cousin before him, Winston Watkins, Jr. is making a name for himself down in Florida. Though he’s just a freshman in the Class of 2025, Watkins is already playing …

The Clemson Insider checked back in with the cousin of a Clemson legend.

Just like his cousin before him, Winston Watkins, Jr. is making a name for himself down in Florida. Though he’s just a freshman in the Class of 2025, Watkins is already playing for IMG Academy’s (Bradenton, Fla.) National Team.

Sammy Watkins’ season with the Baltimore Ravens is currently underway, but that hasn’t stopped him from giving some motivational advice to his younger cousin.

“He’s been telling me to stay focused, stay dedicated and keep getting good grades because if I don’t get good grades, I won’t be able to make it anywhere,” Watkins told TCI. “It’s hard work. You got to have hard work to make it. Some people don’t work at all that have a lot of talent…if you work hard, you can get anything you want in life.”

And Sammy would know.

Though he hasn’t heard from them since he camped at the Dabo Swinney Camp, Watkins understands the slow-played approach that Clemson takes to recruiting. He’s also been able to see it through the lens of his roommate and close friend, Carnell Tate, who is being recruited by Clemson and wide receivers coach Tyler Grisham.

First off, there are not many freshmen who can say they’re playing at the level Watkins is.

“It’s been pretty good,” he said. “I’m glad to be able to play with all these great players. It’s a blessing, honestly. A lot of kids can’t be in the position I’m in and do what I do. I feel like I’m at the best level of any high school level you can play on.

Before he arrived at IMG, Watkins received offers from Texas A&M, Florida State, Georgia Tech and Central Michigan. He picked up an offer from the University of Florida and has spoken with Penn State after he arrived in Bradenton.

While Watkins has some impressive Division I offers himself, he gets to play with some of the best players in the country every single day.

“Every day I’m going up against the best of the best,” Watkins said. “If I don’t have a dog fight with them, I ain’t getting better. Every day I get better with them.”

Iron sharpens iron.

“They teach me things that I don’t even really know, just from being a more mature, older person in life,” he said when asked what he’s learned from his teammates. “They teach me some things about the game, real life, all that, especially my roommate, Carnell. He teaches me a lot.”

As mentioned above, Tate’s recruitment has allowed Watkins to take a step back and learn from the 2023 four-star receiver, but also compete with him.

“It’s kind of like an inspiration for me because I look up to him,” Watkins said. “He does great things on the field and off the field. His grades look great. He’s like a great role model for me. He’s just shown me the right way to go.”

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