Montgomery (Ala.) Catholic four-star linebacker T.J. Dudley narrowed down his list of two dozen scholarship offers over the weekend, naming a top six of Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida State, LSU and Oregon on Saturday via Twitter.

The top class of 2022 prospect is grateful for all of the college opportunities he has been given but glad to now have a set group of favorites that he can focus on moving forward.

“It’s just a blessing in general to be able to have schools to choose from for me to attend,” Dudley told The Clemson Insider, “and I’m just thankful for everything.”

Clemson dished out an offer to Dudley last month after hosting him on campus for the program’s junior day in March.

Head coach Dabo Swinney, defensive coordinator Brent Venables and Todd Bates, Dudley’s area recruiter, made a great impression on him during the visit and are a big reason why he is high on the Tigers.

“I love the coaching staff at Clemson,” Dudley said. “You can tell they really care about their players, and I also feel that Clemson fits my style of play. That was one of the main things, that they fit my style of play.”

Dudley also gave TCI a brief comment on what he likes best about the other schools in his top six:

Alabama: “I love the toughness about Alabama. When I went to my first game visit there, the crowd, the atmosphere was great, and you could tell the players played with a different type of toughness.”

Auburn: “Toughness, and one of the main things, I love Auburn’s coaching staff – T Will (Travis Williams), Coach (Al) Pogue and Coach (Gus) Malzahn are great guys on and off the field. So, that was one of the main things.”

Florida State: “Florida State’s tough. I just like the atmosphere in Tallahassee, and I’ve been down there a couple times. My mother’s from Tallahassee, so I’ve been down there a couple times. I just love Tallahassee, the city and team, and the coaching staff.”

LSU: “The toughness, being in Baton Rouge playing, and that stadium is crazy every game day. So, it’s just a different type of intensity.”

Oregon: “I always liked Oregon since a little kid because they love speed. That’s a fast football team, a fast program with good speed, and that’s one thing that I like about myself is speed.”

At the end of the day, all of the schools in Dudley’s top six share a few common threads and pique his interest for similar reasons.

“I felt like all top six fit my style of play, and also I love the coaching staff and the fans everywhere,” he said. “All six schools have great fan bases and campuses, so that was one of the main things.”

So, what’s next for Dudley in his recruitment now that he has narrowed things down?

“As of right now, I’m focused on these schools,” he said. “I don’t know exactly what the time will tell, but maybe lower it down to something else or a commitment, I don’t know yet.”

Dudley would ideally like to visit his top schools again before he makes a decision but isn’t sure if that will happen because of COVID-19 and the ongoing NCAA dead period.

“Of course I want to, but with all this going on, I don’t know when I’ll even be able to be on campus with any of those schools because I’ve been hearing things about the winter and also not (being able to make visits) until next year,” he said. “So, I don’t know yet.”

As a sophomore in 2019, Dudley registered 117 total tackles including 20 for loss and 7.5 sacks. He is ranked as the No. 17 outside linebacker and No. 205 overall prospect in the 2022 class according to the 247Sports Composite.

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