Clemson Football: Ray Thornton is a true Tiger at heart
The Clemson football coaching staff signed 29 prospects to the 2019 freshman class. Here’s a look at freshman safety Ray Thornton.
When you talk about love for Clemson football and continuing to be persistent, you have to talk about Ray Thornton.
Thornton, a 3-star safety from Phenix City, Alabama, made plenty of college visits during his recruitment but it was clear that his heart was in Tiger Town.
Thornton had offers from Florida, Auburn, Virginia, Ole Miss, USF, Mississippi State and a plethora of others, but he was waiting for that one special offer. As he headed into the summer of 2018, it was unclear if he would get an offer from Clemson football.
Thornton attended Dabo Swinney’s camp on June 12 and just a couple of weeks later received a scholarship offer from the Tigers on June 21. On June 22, Thornton shut down his recruitment and committed to Clemson.
As we continue our series looking at each of the 29 players who committed to the Tigers in 2019, let’s take a look at Ray Thornton.
Talent Analysis:
Thornton is a long-term project in the defensive backfield. He reminds me of a Jadar Johnson in some ways.
Thornton projects as a Nickel/SAM player in the future, though it’s not clear that the coaches will move him over to that position. Currently, he measures in at 6-foot-2 and 198 pounds. If Thornton were to move to that spot, he’d need to put on a bit of weight.
If he stays at safety, he’d need to increase his closing speed and agility. Thornton is a physical player with the ability to make plays and have good angles to the runner, but he doesn’t have the top-line speed or closing ability to play safety full-time.
So, in many ways, he’s a tweener. The coaching staff could develop him into a Nickel/SAM player. They also could choose to take the route of developing him similar to a Tanner Muse at safety.
Next. Marvin Harrison's son shows interest in Clemson. dark
Immediate Impact?
It’s expected that Thornton will redshirt this season. The Tigers have some depth and experience at the safety position with Tanner Muse, K’Von Wallace, Nolan Turner, Denzel Johnson and fellow freshman Joseph Charleston, which will open the door for him to develop over this next year.