Clemson trying to steal recruit from Longhorns’ backyard
Four-star Austin, Texas safety Andrew Mukuba (6-foot, 185 pounds) has the hometown Texas Longhorns breathing down his neck to stay home for his college football. And he’s listening. But there are several major suitors outside of the state trying to pull Mukuba away. One of them is Clemson, and the Tigers, after making their offer in March, appear to be right there with the Longhorns in this recruiting skirmish.
“I get a lot of calls and a lot of text messages. Clemson definitely hits me up a lot,” Mukuba said. “I talk all the time to Coach (Mickey) Conn and Coach (Brent) Venables. Alabama hits me up a lot and I talk to Coach (Nick Saban). LSU has been hitting me up a lot and I talk to Coach O. Arkansas, SMU, TCU, Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor and Texas. I obviously talk to Coach (Tom) Herman a lot. There are more than that but that is all I can think of right now.”
Mukuba never has visited Clemson but he plans to once the coast is clear for campus visits to resume. But he’s done his homework on the program and knows enough to feel strongly about the Tigers.
“Clemson is a great school, not just for football but its people. It’s the people that are there and the environment,” he said. “Coach (Dabo) Swinney has been there for 18 years. I think that is what he told me. And Coach Venables has been there for a while, too. They have all been there so long. Things on that coaching staff aren’t going to change anytime soon. Clemson is also in the top four every year competing for the National Championship. They are definitely at the top.”
So, the next step in the process for Mukuba is to actually get to Clemson and see things for himself. He’s anxious to do that.
“I am going to get to Clemson as soon as possible. Whenever I talk to the coaches, they speak very highly about the family feel that they have there,” Mukuba said. “Whenever you go there you are going to feel like you are apart of the family. That is one thing I am interested in seeing. I want to see how that affects me and how I look at that when I get there. I love family values and I am all about communication so that is what I want to see.”
Mukuba also holds offers from Alabama, Oklahoma, TCU, Arizona State, Mississippi State, Florida State, Baylor, UCLA, Kansas State, Utah, Michigan State, Georgia, Minnesota, LSU, Washington State, Duke and others.
Last season he had 26 tackles with 2 interceptions, and 33 receptions for 641 yards and touchdowns interceptions. He’s ranked the 14th best safety in the country in the 247Sports Composite and the No, 41 prospect in Texas.
Notes:
▪ Bubba Chandler, who holds a Clemson QB offer, has a Zoom meeting with the Louisville offensive staff Tuesday. The Cardinals have not yet offered. He went thru a number of long-distance meetings with Clemson coaches before getting the offer.
▪ Clemson is in the top 15 with 5-star offensive lineman Tristan Leigh of Fairfax, Virginia. The others on his list are Georgia, Florida State, Virginia, LSU, Florida, Virginia Tech, Miami, Penn State, Oklahoma, Maryland, UCF, Ohio State, Alabama and Southern Cal. Leigh visited Clemson last season for the Florida State game He was back in January for a junior day. Leigh remains in touch with Clemson offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell who is selling him on the idea of being his next left tackle following Jackson Carman.