CLEMSON — A young in-state ATH will make his return to Clemson next week.

2027 ATH Bubba Alexander (Hammond) will be on hand when the Tigers close out the home portion of the schedule against Furman on November 22.

Having grown up a Clemson fan, Alexander has been a frequent visitor. He made multiple visits back in the spring, returned for camp in the summer, and this will mark his second game-day visit of the season. He was also in attendance for the SMU game in October.

Being a fan of the Tigers, as well as playing for a powerhouse like Hammond, Alexander has a different perspective when it comes to the disappointing season Clemson is experiencing.

“I think it is interesting,” Alexander told The Clemson Insider. “With the expectations, there is probably a lot of pressure to perform. From the high school that I am at, we win state championships — we’ve won eight in a row — there is a tremendous amount of pressure on us just to win. But I have definitely been surprised with how things have shaken out.”

Alexander also believes what’s transpired this season can be a valuable learning experience.

“It’s really been interesting with how people have responded to it,” Alexander added. “It’s been eye-opening. I know a lot of teams have a down year, and that opens teams up to, ‘We needed a down year to know what we need to do to get back up.'”

As a sophomore last season, Alexander helped lead Hammond to a state title, racking up 110 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 12 quarterback pressures, two sacks and two forced fumbles. He was named second-team All-State and was also a participant in the North-South All-Star game.

Alexander has excelled as a two-way player as a junior. On top of what he’s done at linebacker, he’s also taken on a role as one of the running backs on his team, averaging 6.5 yards per carry and scoring eight touchdowns.

South Carolina, Furman, The Citadel, Wofford and Charlotte have also gotten game-day visits. Alexander said he was considering going to Mercer this weekend.

When he gets back to Clemson the following weekend, Alexander is looking forward to getting to once again chop it up with the Clemson coaching staff, including linebackers coach Ben Boulware and defensive coordinator Tom Allen.

“Mostly just talking to the coaches,” Alexander said. “Being less high-stakes for them — I expect them to handle Furman — You can ask more in-depth questions of them. I got to talk to them for a fair amount of time the last time I came, but to be able to ask some more deeper questions that they might have more time to answer because of who they are playing that day. Always fun to be back on campus and watch them play.”

East Tennessee State offered Alexander after watching him work out as a running back. While that remains his only offer, Alexander knows he still has another year to go in this process, and his dream still remains having a chance to play at Clemson, the team he grew up rooting for.

“Oh yeah. I am not too worried about it,” Alexander said. “If it shakes out, it shakes out. If it doesn’t, it’s God’s plan anyway. Just having fun playing high school ball right now. Wherever I end up if it works out for me, that will be good.”

Photo courtesy of Bubba Alexander on X (formerly known as Twitter)