A big defensive lineman from the Yellowhammer State drawing early interest from Clemson is set to visit today.

Opelika (Ala.) High School’s Malik Autry – a 6-foot-6, 265-pound rising sophomore in the class of 2025 with a couple of Power Five offers already under his belt – will be on campus today for an unofficial visit.

Clemson defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall extended the visit invitation to Autry, who was previously on campus to compete at the Dabo Swinney Camp last June.

“He invited me through my head coach from my school,” Autry told The Clemson Insider. “I went to a camp at Clemson last year in the summertime, and me and Coach Lemanski have a good (relationship). Coach Lemanski Hall is from down where I live at… So, I’ve got a lot of interest from Clemson.”

Autry’s hometown of Opelika is located less than 20 miles from where Hall grew up in Valley, Ala.

Autry expects his bond with Hall to continue growing as he goes through the recruiting process, and he said the interest from Hall and being on a school like Clemson’s radar as only a rising sophomore “means a lot” to him.

“I think me and Coach Hall’s relationship is definitely going to go far,” he added, “and Clemson is definitely going to be one of my top schools at the end.”

Opelika (Ala.) High School 2025 DL Malik Autry (pictured top right) on a visit to Mississippi State last October (photo courtesy of @MalikAutry on Twitter)

Autry received his first offer from Georgia in June 2021, then added an offer from Louisville in January of this year.

According to Autry, the Bulldogs offered him as a combo defensive lineman who could play tackle and/or end, and that’s what he envisions he’ll end up being in college. He prides himself on being versatile and able to play any position along the D-line.

Autry describes himself as a “fast and strong” D-lineman. Tough would be another apt word to describe him, as Autry played through a torn meniscus in some of the games during his freshman season last year.

“I had my meniscus repaired at the end of the year, so I didn’t get to finish the whole season,” he said. “But I played varsity and I played with my ninth-grade team until the injury came about.”

“I felt it, but being on varsity and stuff, you kind of have to try to push through it,” he added. “So, I pushed through for a little bit, and then I went to the doctor again. That’s when I got the MRI and found out it was torn.”

Autry’s experience at the Swinney Camp last summer left a strong impression on him and still resonates with him today. He said Clemson’s camp was probably the most helpful camp in terms of developing skills than any other college camp he participated in.

“I know I went to the camp, and I liked the D-linemen that were helping out with the camp. All of them were great people in general,” he said. “It really helped. Because a lot of the camps I went to, it was more about just trying to see who’s the best and not really trying to get everybody better at what you were doing.”

Autry has been looking forward to taking in the Tigers’ spring practice today and seeing what a college football practice will be like when he gets to the next level.

“I want to see how the D-linemen move, how it’s going to be when I get to college – how much conditioning, running, how fast you need to be, stuff like that,” he said. “Just trying to make sure that when it’s my time, that I’m ready for it.”

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