The remaining eight members of Clemson’s historic 2018 signing class arrived to campus in late June, joining the group of mid-year enrollees that the Tigers welcomed to the fold in January.
In this feature, TCI takes a fresh look at the eight newcomers and gives a scouting report on what each player does best, how they will fit in and more. In this installment, we look at kicker B.T. Potter:
Position: PK
Hometown (High School): Rock Hill, S.C. (South Pointe High School)
Height, Weight: 5-11, 165
Prospect ratings/rankings: 3-star, NR national, No. 2 K, No. 28 state (Rivals); 3-star, No. 391 regional, No. 7 K, No. 18 state (ESPN); 2-star, No. 2448 national, No. 10 K, No. 42 state (247Sports)
High school stats/accolades: Considered the No. 1 overall kicker in the nation according to Chris Sailer… played in the 2018 U.S. Army All-American Bowl and kicked a 32-yard field goal… A four-year starter at placekicker at South Pointe, scored 304 points on 31-45 field goals and 211 extra points… made field goals on 12 of 17 attempts as a senior… made 77-81 extra points… his most incredible stat was 117 touchbacks on 126 kickoffs… also handled the punting and averaged 37.1 yards per punt… in 2016 he made 11-15 field goals, including a career long of 49 yards… made 49-54 extra points and scored 82 total points… averaged 39 yards a punt on 45 punts… as a sophomore in 2015 made 4-7 field goals, including a 43-yarder… made 40-45 extra points and scored 51 points for the year… as a freshman made 4-6 field goals and 45-51 extra points… kicked a 67-yard field goal in a showcase event
Strengths: Potter has a booming leg and can flat-out boot the ball a long way. His biggest strength is consistently kicking the ball out of the back of the end zone on kickoffs; only nine times in 126 tries did Potter not record a touchback on kickoffs last season. Potter showed at South Pointe that he is more than capable of handling the placekicking and punting duties, as well. He is a special talent and will be a huge asset for the Tigers in the future.
How he fits in: Potter will compete in fall camp with fellow scholarship kickers Greg Huegel and Alex Spence. Kickoffs figure to be Potter’s best path to playing time as a freshman, and that’s the area he has focused on in his training this offseason. He stands to assume the placekicking duties in 2019, as both Huegel and Spence will exhaust their eligibility this season. In our opinion, Potter has the potential to be one of the best kickers in school history before it’s all said and done.
Quotable: Potter on preparing for his freshman season —
“Mostly I’ve been looking at what Clemson does for kickoffs. Some of the players have told me that on kickoffs, they try to put it between the numbers and the hashes. So I’ve been working on my placement on kickoffs so I can do what they want me to do, and just my consistency.
“I’m going to try to do whatever I can to help the team out the most. Whatever role it is, I’m going to try to do it to the best of my abilities.”
Hot off the press. ‘Back with a Vengeance’ is now available for online orders. TCI takes an in-depth look at the upcoming season as the Tigers march towards another national championship. Order your copy today!
