5-star recruit ‘definitely’ interested in Clemson football after staff change
David Sanders Jr. said he had a “good relationship” with Thomas Austin, who was fired in November after two seasons as Clemson football’s offensive line coach.
But that coaching change hasn’t altered how Sanders, a five-star 2025 recruit and the No. 1 offensive tackle in the country, thinks about Tigers.
In fact, it may improve their standing.
Speaking with Adam Friedman of Rivals.com last month, Sanders, a consensus top five recruit in the upcoming class, said new Clemson offensive line coach Matt Luke has reached out to him “multiple times” and the program remains a player in his recruitment as he heads into his final season of high school football.
“I definitely want to get back up there to meet him in person and start building that relationship with him,” Sanders said of Luke in a Dec. 12 interview, adding that “he seems like a great guy just from over the phone. So I just can’t wait to get there.”
Making progress with Sanders is a top priority for Luke, who won a national championship as Georgia’s offensive line coach and also served as head coach at Ole Miss before being hired as Austin’s replacement at Clemson on Dec. 4.
Sanders, a rising senior at Providence Day School in Charlotte is widely regarded as one of the can’t-miss prospects in the Class of 2025. He’s 6-foot-7, 270 pounds and a dominant force at left tackle, one of the most crucial positions for a football team.
But he’s also one of the most coveted recruits in the country and someone who entered his junior season with over 130 scholarship offers, according to the Charlotte Observer.
He may have grown up a Clemson fan — “At one point my bathroom was all Clemson decked out,” he told 247Sports last year after the Tigers offered him a scholarship he described as a “dream come true” — but his recruitment’s stretched far beyond that.
He has interest from every notable school in the Power Five from the College Football Playoff field and down. In a 247Sports interview earlier this month, he cited Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama as the three schools doing the best job recruiting him heading into his senior season.
So, naturally, there’s some room for improvement with Clemson and Luke, who hasn’t been shy in his pursuit of top offensive linemen since joining the Tigers and now has an elite prospect just a state above him. (A lack of success with regional recruits, including three in-state linemen in the Class of 2023, reportedly played a part in Swinney’s decision to part ways with Austin.)
Sanders, an all-state pick and the Gatorade High School Player of the Year for North Carolina, admitted in the Rivals interview he didn’t know “anything” about Luke when he was hired.
“But my family and I did a little bit of research,” Sanders said. “I was able to see where he came from, different schools he coached at. He has an amazing résumé, and I do look forward to meeting him for myself.”
During his two seasons at Georgia, Luke, 47, coached players who accounted for three All-SEC honors and four NFL Draft picks. He was also a key player in the development of Laremy Tunsil, a three-time All-SEC selection at Ole Miss and first-round NFL Draft pick, and brings 20-plus years of coaching experience to Clemson.
That track record appeals to Sanders, a standout athlete with professional aspirations who also plays defensive line and competes for Providence Day’s track and field team.
One key early test in Clemson’s continued pursuit of Sanders — and Luke’s early months recruiting him — will be whether the program can get the decorated offensive lineman on campus for its Elite Junior Day later this month.
The Tigers have an earlier start than usual with their incoming class; Clemson already has seven verbal commitments for the Class of 2025 and ranks No. 7 in the 247Sports composite team rankings.
Sanders, the first Class of 2025 recruit to receive a Clemson offer, indicated this month to 247Sports that he’d “probably” visit Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama for those programs’ respective junior day events in January and February.
Outside of those three schools and Clemson, Sanders said UNC, Florida State, Ohio State, Southern Cal, Texas and South Carolina are involved in his recruitment.
“It’s still an even playing field as of right now,” he said.
Clemson football 2025 commits
Listed in order of commitment date
- 4-star RB Gideon Davidson, Liberty Christian Academy (Va.)
- 4-star QB Blake Hebert, Central Catholic (Mass.)
- 4-star OL Easton Ware, Liberty Christian Academy (Va.)
- 4-star TE Logan Brooking, Savannah Christian Prep (Ga.)
- Unranked WR Juju Preston, Freedom (Va.)
- 4-star DT Amare Adams, South Florence (SC)
- 4-star ATH Marquise Henderson, Belton-Honea Path (SC)
