Nyles Pinckney shaping up to be USC-Clemson battle

Defensive lineman Nyles Pinckney of Whale Branch High in Seabrook has some quality out of state offers such as Georgia, Florida, Virginia, Miami, Duke, North Carolina, Georgia Tech and Florida State.

He’s not shutting out any of those right now, but as the recruiting calendar turns to summer, Pinckney’s primary focus is on Clemson and South Carolina.

Both schools continue to work him hard, and he’s in regular contact with coaches. Pinckney spoke with Clemson defensive line coach Dan Brooks on Thursday night.

“We’ve just been talking and catching up and talking about my recruiting and how they need me and could use me on their defensive line,” Pinckney said.

USC defensive line coach Deke Adams has also been in touch and continues to try and sell Pinckney (6-3, 290) on the virtues of joining the Gamecocks.

“He was telling how they’ve got a new playing style on defense that fits me and I can do whatever I want,” Pinckney said. “He talked about how their academics fit me because I want to major in business. And he talked about how this past year was a rough year but they are looking upwards now.”

Pinckney visited Clemson twice last season for games but did not make it there this spring. He did get to USC for a junior day. And he will get back to both places this summer for visits but he doesn’t plan to participate in any camp workouts unless schools want him to

Pinckney also plans to see some out-of-state schools, but it’s the battle within the border he’s dealing with right now.

“I’m leaning toward kind of instate because I feel like I’ll be close to my family,” he said. “I’m really not all the way there, but I feel kind of closest to staying instate.”

Pinkney said the out-of-state schools recruiting the hardest are Georgia, Georgia Tech and Alabama.

He plans to attend the All-In Barbeque at Clemson in July. And he’s looking at getting back to USC sometime in June. He also wants to see Georgia, Georgia Tech and Alabama.

Pinckney said there’s no leader right now, including between the Tigers and Gamecocks.

“They are both kind of high on my list because they are in-state,” Pinckney said.

He is thinking about graduating early, so he wants to make his decision by August. Last season Pinckney had 98 tackles with 22 tackles for loss and five sacks.