Top-rated quarterback recruit breaks down Clemson visit
Bellflower, California quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, considered the top prospect in the 2020 class by some analysts, made his much-anticipated return visit to Clemson last week. He and his family arrived Wednesday and left Sunday. “Everything went great. I don’t think it could have gone any better,” Uiagalelei said. “I’ve been to Clemson and I know how I feel, but I wanted my family to come out and see everything and see what they thought about it. Everybody had a good time.”
Uiagalelei was able to watch spring practice and the game on Saturday. The visit also gave his mother her first look at the school.
“There isn’t anything Clemson could have done different,” he said. “They did everything right. But I knew coming out here that this visit was just to let my whole family see Clemson, check out the campus, and get a feel for what it would be like if I was here. We did that. My family loved it.”
Uiagalelei also spent a lot of time with some of the other top Clemson targets who were in for the spring game.
“I was spending time with RJ Mickens, and then he committed,” Uiagalelei said. “I got to talk to Bryan Bresee and a lot of other guys. We know each other through things like Snapchat and things like that, so it was good to spend time with them and talk to them. But we had a photo shoot with all of the committed offensive linemen, except for Paul (Tchio), who wasn’t there. I took a picture in the middle of those guys.”
Uiagalelei will visit Oregon April 20th for its spring game and is planning a decision between the Tigers and the Ducks within two months.
Highly-rated corner sees Tigers
One of the standout prospects on hand for Clemson’s spring game Saturday was Miami cornerback Jalen Harrell (6-foot-2, 180 pounds). Harrell has a Clemson offer along with offers from Florida State, Miami, Arkansas, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Louisville, Maryland, Nebraska, Pitt, Tennessee, South Florida and Central Florida. This visit put Clemson in a good spot with him moving forward.
“I liked the family atmosphere, everyone is family on their team, and I believe that’s where they separate themselves from others,” Harrell said. “It was great to see the national champs live. I got a chance to talk with coach (Mike) Reed and (coach Brent) Venables, but the conversations were brief with a lot of things going on.”
Harrell said he focused on the play of the cornerbacks during the spring game and got a good look at the talent the Tigers have in those positions and how they are coached.
“I must say it was good cornerback play for the most part and I liked how they were running man, which I’m use to with my high school team who runs man a lot as well,” he said. “As far as coaching, I saw coach Reed in a players face telling him about a missed assignment, but that’s pretty much it.”
Harrell also has visited Miami three ties this spring. He’s also been to Florida State and will visit UCF this week.
“I enjoyed Clemson the most,” Harrell said. “Clemson is still definitely in my top group with Florida State, Penn State and Miami.