By Hale McGranahan.

NORTH CHARLESTON – Since arriving to Fort Dorchester over a decade ago, Steve LaPrad has seen three of his former players move on to careers in the NFL.

He believes John Simpson has the goods to be counted alongside Byron Maxwell, Robert Quinn and Carlos Dunlap.

“I told him,” LaPrad said, during last week’s on location interview with TheClemsonInsider, “We sat down and talked about it. I told him, ‘Keep your nose clean, do what you’re supposed to do, continue to get better.’

“He knows he’s really improving. I said, ‘Continue to get better, four or five years from now, you’ll be a first two rounder, for sure.'”

Maxwell, who played cornerback at Clemson, recently signed a $63 million free-agent contract with the Eagles. Defensive ends Robert Quinn and Carlos Dunlap play for the Rams and Bengals, respectively.

“I’ve had some really good kids here, but he’s the best offensive linemen I’ve had since I’ve been here,” LaPrad said of Simpson. “He’s a good one.”

Simpson played his first two seasons of high school ball at Stall, before transferring to Fort Dorchester, which has been his home for close to a year now.

“He’s got the size. He’s got the speed. He bends really well. That’s his thing, as far as recruiting goes, that’s what those guys see,” LaPrad said. “He’s just special. He bends so well. He’s not stiff. He’s got the long arms, big hands, he’s a wrestler. He runs very well.

“Really, work ethic is just amazing…he’s just a great kid. He’ll help somebody.”

Clemson and South Carolina would certainly welcome his services. So would a number of other schools. Florida, Simpson’s most recent offer, joined the fray earlier this month when he was on campus in Gainesville.

“The commits that they have right now…before I met the head coach, coach (Jim McElwain), they were telling me all the facts about it and how important I would be to the offensive linemen, because they don’t have that many offensive linemen this year coming up,” Simpson said.

Clemson co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott stopped by Fort Dorchester last Tuesday.

“I don’t really call coaches that often. I don’t really have enough time. I’m busy all the time,” Simpson said. “But the relationship we have — he couldn’t really talk to me my freshman year, but he would come and check up on me and make sure that I was straight. That’s a good thing.”

Listed by Rivals as the No. 11 ranked guard in the class of 2016, Clemson is recruiting Simpson as a tackle. Other schools like him at guard, his position at Fort Dorchester.

“I think he can play anywhere. It’s not going to matter. It’s wherever they want him, he’ll be able to handle it,” LaPrad said.

Simpson wants to visit Clemson before the summer and again in June for the Dabo Swinney Football Camp.

While the Tigers are firmly in contention, he opted to refrain from naming them or anyone else as a favorite or in some sort of a lead group.

“As of right now, I don’t really have a top five, like a real, steady top five, because every time I go to a college it changes,” Simpson said. “I want to visit LSU and Tennessee before I can really say. And, if I get an offer from Auburn and Florida State, then it’s going to change.

“I don’t want to tell anybody my top five when it’s not really my top five.”

A pair of factors will be considered as he moves through the recruiting process.

“Education, it’s college, you’re going to get educated. I want to be able to trust the people who are educating me, like the tutors…I want to be able to know that I’m accepted and they’ll take the time out to focus on me,” Simpson said. “I want my teammates to be like brothers. Dakereon (Joyner) and I, we hang out all the time. We’re like brothers. That’s how I want it to be in college.”