CLEMSON — Jaden Wuerth hasn’t been in the state of South Carolina very long, but he is pretty well-versed when it comes to the Clemson football program.
After beginning his high school career at Aquinas in Georgia, the three-star DL has made the move to the Palmetto State and is now getting ready to start his junior season, helping anchor the defensive front at Dutch Fork.
While the season has yet to start, Wuerth feels like he is already benefiting from playing under the tutelage of Tom Knotts.
“I love it,” Wuerth told The Clemson Insider. “He just pushes everyone hard. He makes me a better player.”
The 6-foot-3, 275-pound prospect visited Clemson last fall for the Tigers’ win over NC State, then returned over the summer to work out at Dabo Swinney’s high school camp.
“It was good, got some good work in,” Wuerth said. “Coach (Nick) Eason and all of them already knew who I was, so it was good to just work with them and see how they coach and things like that. Then they showed me around the campus and stuff afterwards.”
Working out at camp gave Wuerth an opportunity to witness Eason’s coaching style.
“He pushes everyone hard,” Wuerth said. “The best guys on the team, he is going to coach them the hardest. He is going to make you a better player, and he also wants the best for you. Outside of football, he wants the best for you, as well.”
“He’s also now seen enough to know that there is just something different about Clemson.
“It is different from everywhere I have been,” Wuerth said. “They care about you as a player, but they care about everything that comes with it. Like school, how your family is doing, just everything. That is something that’s important to me.”
Wuerth has been getting a lot of attention from Eason since the summer. The two are in constant contact. However, Eason wants to see how Wuerth performs at Dutch Fork against better competition than he saw in Georgia before handing out an offer.
“He just wants to see the first couple of games,” Wuerth said. “He wants to see me play against better competition. Because I moved, and he just wants to see how it goes. He likes me a lot, though.”
Despite having yet to play a game for Dutch Fork, Wuerth is already ranked as one of the Top 10 players in the state. Georgia Tech offered in May, with South Carolina offering in June after Wuerth camped with the Gamecocks.
Now Wuerth is getting ready to take a number of game-day visits, and the first one on the docket is Clemson’s big season-opener against LSU on August 30.
“Of course, the game. I think it is going to be a good game,” Wuerth said. “Clemson is very talented this year, and their defensive line is good. I just want to see how they look overall as a team. It will also be good to see the coaches and stuff again.”
With his recruitment really just getting started, Wuerth is in no rush to make a decision. For now, he is looking to prove himself at his new school. When that time does come, education and culture will be big factors, and Clemson certainly appears to check those boxes for him.
“Definitely academics,” Wuerth said. “And the culture that is established there. Clemson has a great culture. Plus the belief the coaching staff has in me and somewhere I can be developed and where I will be a good fit in their program.”
Photo by Bart Boatwright