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For over a year, Clemson’s staff targeted only one defensive tackle.
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The investment was worth it.
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Greensboro (NC) Dudley four-star page Payton Page announced its engagement to the Tigers Tuesday night.
Page (6-4, 330), ranked No. 30 nationally by Rivals.com, chose Clemson over the finalists Tennessee and UNC.
LSU and Oregon had completed their top five positions during the spring before pandemic restrictions prevented a first visit to those schools, while Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, Florida, Notre Dame, Penn State and South Carolina were among their offers. .
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Having added volume at the previous cycle position, the defensive tackles coach Todd bates He was particularly selective in his search for this class and set his sights on Page a year ago.
Page represented one of the first Clemson offerings dispensed when the Tigers turned the page to the 2021 class at the end of their first years in high school.
Consequently, Page attended a couple of Clemson’s games and was the only defensive tackle featured for the show’s elite junior day in January.
Page also visited UNC and Tennessee during the spring, and each felt they could have a boost in several stages.
However, the relationship Bates forged with the Page family, along with the national profile and Clemson’s pedigree at the defensive tackle position, ultimately won.
As a junior, Page was credited with 80 tackles, eight sacks and 26 tackles for loss.
It becomes Clemson’s fourteenth engagement for the class, including promise 12 to qualify as a four-star or higher online.
Page moves the Tigers three places to No. 8 on the Rivals.com team recruiting class rankings despite having the fewest commitments in the top 13. They also have the fourth best average star rating for engagement (3.86).
Page becomes Clemson’s third acquisition of the state of North Carolina for this cycle, joining four-star running back Will Shipley of Matthews and (DE) Zaire Patterson of Winston-Salem.
Clemson’s 14 promises are from another state.
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