Clemson signed 21 players as part of its 2022 recruiting class, some of whom still have yet to make it to campus.
Nine signees went through spring practice as early enrollees while the rest, including transfer Hunter Johnson, will arrive on campus this summer. The Clemson Insider is taking a closer look at each newcomer and the likelihood of him contributing immediately this fall based on development and positional need.
TCI previously highlighted Keith Adams Jr., T.J. Dudley, Sherrod Covil Jr., Robert Gunn III, Kylon Griffin, Cade Klubnik, Jahiem Lawson, Jeadyn Lukus and Johnson. Next up is Kobe McCloud.
Position: Linebacker
Height: 6-foot
Weight: 210 pounds
Ranking: 3 stars (247Sports Composite)
Previous school: Gaither (Florida) High
Early enrollee? No
The skinny: McCloud comes from a football family. He’s following in the footsteps of his brother, San Francisco 49ers receiver Ray Ray McCloud, who played at Clemson from 2015-17. His other brother, Jordan, is a quarterback at Arizona. The youngest McCloud was a two-way player in high school but is the only one of the trio that will line up on the defensive side of the ball in college. He was productive during his prep career at Gaither, finishing as the school’s career leader in tackles (234) and interceptions (13).
McCloud has the frame, speed and athleticism that could play at multiple positions on the second level of Clemson’s defense, though immediately playing time figures to be hard to come by at the position. Despite losing two starters in James Skalski and Baylon Spector, Clemson still has experience back at and near the top of the linebacker depth chart, including juniors Lavonta Bentley, Keith Maguire and Trenton Simpson, who’s making the move from Sam to Will ‘backer. Barrett Carter and Malcolm Greene are manning the Sam/nickel spot. Cracking the rotation may be tough for McCloud as a true freshman, but he’s got a skill set that could be useful on special teams.
