By Will Vandervort.
By 9:15 a.m. on Wednesday Clemson’s 2015 recruiting class was signed, by 9:16 all the focus turned to the 2016 class. By lunch the Clemson coaches will have two commitments for ’16 and by supper they will have three, including the nation’s top running back in Spartanburg’s Tavien Feaster.
In all, including the 15 freshmen that enrolled in January, Clemson signed 26 players which included four five-star athletes and 13 four-star players. It is considered by many of the so-called recruiting experts as one of the best recruiting classes in the country.
Clemson led the ACC with 13 signees that ranked in ESPN’s top 300 list and four players in Rivals top 50.
The day started with Thomasville, Ga., defensive end Austin Bryant who faxed in his National Letter of Intent at 7:15 in the morning. It was not too much longer the two guys who caused all the drama this past weekend with an official visit to Auburn made sure their faxes were into the Clemson football offices by 8 a.m.
Wide receiver / athlete Ray Ray McCloud sent in his NLI fax by 7:22 a.m. and wide receiver Deon Cain had his in at 8:04 a.m. Cain had been committed to Clemson since May 30, 2014, while McCloud committed to head coach Dabo Swinney on July 28, 2014. Both are considered five star-wide receivers.
After Cain the fax machine got even busier with defensive tackle Gage Cervenka, tight end Garrett Williams, defensive end Clelin Ferrell, defensive end Christian Wilkins and Bamberg-Ehrhardt’s LaSamuel Davis sending their NLI in by 9 a.m.
Cornerback Amir Trapp, cornerback Mark Fields and then safety Tanner Muse followed behind them.
The 15 early enrollees led the nation thanks to the high number of former players who graduated by December.
2015 CLEMSON SIGNINGS
Name | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Hometown/High school
Shadell Bell | WR | 6-3 | 190 | Decatur, Ga.
Austin Bryant | DE | 6-4 | 251 | Thomasville, Ga.
Kelly Bryant | QB | 6-4 | 205 | Wren
Deon Cain | WR | 6-1 | 190 | Tampa, Fla.
Gage Cervenka | DT | 6-3 | 277 | Emerald
Kaleb Chalmers | DB | 6-0 | 177 | Greenwood
J.D. Davis | LB | 6-2 | 220 | Daniel
Judah Davis | LB | 6-2 | 220 | Daniel
LaSamuel Davis | DE | 6-4 | 215 | Bamberg-Ehrhardt
Clelin Ferrell | DE | 6-5 | 220 | Richmond, Va.
Mark Fields | DB | 5-10 | 186 | Charlotte, N.C.
Jake Fruhmorgen | OL | 6-5 | 282 | Tampa, Fla.
Zach Giella | OL | 6-5 | 275 | Augusta, Ga.
Noah Green | OL | 6-5 | 275 | Boiling Springs
Albert Huggins | DL | 6-3 | 280 | Orangeburg-Wilkinson
Mitch Hyatt | OL | 6-6 | 270 | Suwanee, Ga.
Tucker Israel | QB | 5-11 | 189 | Orlando, Fla.
Sterling Johnson | DE | 6-5 | 275 | Clayton, N.C.
Ray-Ray McCloud | ATH | 5-9 | 176 | Tampa, Fla.
Tanner Muse | DB | 6-4 | 205 | Belmont, N.C.
Chad Smith | LB | 6-3 | 214 | Sterling, Va.
Van Smith | RB | 6-2 | 170 | Charlotte, N.C.
Amir Trapp | DB | 5-7 | 152 | Daniel
Christian Wilkins | DT | 6-5 | 305 | Suffield, Conn.
Garrett Williams | TE | 6-4 | 225 | Orlando, Fla.