Among the standout wide receivers who had the chance to showcase their talent on the fifth and final day of the Dabo Swinney Camp on Sunday, June 12 was Jonathan Paylor — a 5-foot-9, 170-pound four-star rising junior from Burlington (N.C.)’s Hugh M. Cummings High School.
“It was exciting,” Paylor told The Clemson Insider regarding his experience at Sunday’s Swinney Camp. “It was really exciting. The camp was really good.”
When we asked Paylor what stood out about his first-ever experience at Clemson, he didn’t hesitate when he said “everything.” All the attention was on him during the 1-on-1s at the end of Sunday’s session.
“I had asked Coach Dabo what routes he wanted me to run and he was calling out routes and I was just doing them,” he said. “I was putting on this show for him, to let him know that I’m the type of guy that’s gonna compete.”
According to Paylor, Swinney told him that he was a “phenomenal athlete” and that he can really go.
While Swinney spent a significant amount of time watching Paylor during individual drills, it was Tyler Grisham who kept a watchful eye over the Tar Heel State athlete Sunday.
“He really coached me from head to toe on how I should be a person, how life goes and everything,” Paylor said of Clemson’s wide receivers coach. “He’s amazing. He really gets straight to the point and puts trust in his players and puts trust in me that I can develop over time and become a good player.”
Grisham broached the subject of a potential offer with Paylor. However, Clemson has only handed out one offer to a rising junior at the receiver position. Alex Taylor, a four-star, out of Greensboro (N.C.)’s Grimsley High School reported the offer from the Tigers on Saturday.
“He said he would be in touch,” Paylor said regarding a potential offer. “I hope I get it, but at the end of the day, if I don’t, it’s fine because I had a great experience down there at Clemson. I had a couple of conversations with Dabo and everything. Pretty much, I’m just waiting to see how everything goes.”
If Clemson does pull the trigger on a scholarship offer, what would that mean for Paylor and his recruitment?
“Everything,” he said. “It would really set the bar high and I really like Clemson. Clemson is a place where they build receivers and put them in the league as fast as possible. The main thing for me that I know about Clemson is it’s a place that’s probably gonna be at the top of my list for right now. (An offer from Clemson) would be a major part of my recruitment.”
All in all, Paylor thoroughly enjoyed his first trip to Tiger Town.
“It was amazing,” Paylor said. “I did a quick glance around the campus and everything, and that school is one of a kind. I’ve never seen anything like that in my entire life.”
This summer is giving Paylor an opportunity to evaluate some of the schools that he’s looking at. Paylor mentioned N.C. State, UNC and South Carolina as the programs that are currently recruiting him the hardest, with Clemson getting in the mix recently.
In the coming weeks, Paylor will make his way to the Carolina Showtime Camp at the University of North Carolina on June 18, as well as visits to Alabama (June 25) and West Virginia (June 29).
Paylor will likely return to Clemson for a game-day visit sometime this fall.
He currently ranks as the No. 4 athlete and the nation’s No. 18 overall prospect regardless of position in the 2024 class, per 247Sports.
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