Clemson football: Nathaniel Joseph made the right decision

Clemson football had their recruiting momentum stopped momentarily on Tuesday evening.

While Clemson has been on a roll with football recruiting the last two weeks, the expected bump in the road became public as Nathaniel Joseph de-committed from the Tigers and re-opened his recruitment. Joseph is a wide receiver from Edison High School in Miami, Florida. The 247 Composite lists him as a four-star recruit, the 105th player nationally.

https://twitter.com/rayraythaboy/status/1536848760944336896?s=20&t=s940QaAHRZ5QFDOt42GacA

Joseph’s decision shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who has been following recruiting for the past six months. It has been reported for some time that the changes to the coaching staff for the Miami Hurricanes got Joseph’s attention. Further, it has become well known that Miami has boosters who are willing to invest quite a bit of NIL money in their athletes.

I know there were a lot of fans that really wanted Joseph to be in this class because he projected to be a key component of the wide receiver room starting in 2023. Joseph is the kind of slot receiver that Clemson didn’t have in 2021. I have seen a variety of reactions from Clemson fans since the de-commitment was announced. Some have accepted it was coming, some are frustrated, some are arguing with Miami fans who are rejoicing their likely victory (though Joseph’s first visit is likely to be Louisville).

I would have loved to have Joseph join the Tigers in 2023, but I think Joseph has made the right decision. If I was to advise him, without bias, I would tell him that Miami is the logical place for him.

I wouldn’t tell him that it was because of NIL. He doesn’t need anyone to advise him on that. If money at this stage is important, he and his family know who is offering the most. I would simply advise that several Clemson athletes have NIL deals, and many are making decent money. If your curious about this, you should check out On3’s NIL valuator to get a feel for who has deals and how much they are making.

Maybe Joseph’s decision was driven by NIL, but even if it wasn’t a factor, I would still have advised him to de-commit from Clemson and select Miami because it’s best for him and his family.

Distance between home and Clemson could have played a role

Joseph did attend Clemson’s big official visit weekend from June 3-5, and many fans hoped Coach Swinney and the staff could work their magic. Unfortunately, it did not work that way, and I think there is one major reason why. Prior to their trip to Clemson, it became public that his family would be driving to Clemson because his mother had a fear of flying. This means that if his family wanted to see him play in Death Valley, they would have to drive there.

Have you ever driven from the upstate of South Carolina to southern Florida? I have. My grandmother lived in West Palm Beach. Every year as a kid, we made the drive from Charlotte to West Palm Beach. It’s a long, long, long drive. When I grew up, I made the drive myself a few times. Most people I know who have made that trip consider it to be brutal.

While Clemson Nation was hoping Joseph’s official visit would solidify his commitment, I knew there was a good chance that by the time he got there after an eleven-hour drive that his mind was likely to have been made up. I wasn’t upset about that. In fact, I sympathized with him.

I don’t have an inside source with Joseph’s family, so everything I am saying is speculation on my part based on my own past experiences. Sure, I can be critical of Joseph for committing to Clemson in the first place if distance was going to be an issue for his family, but sometimes 17-year-old people don’t always think things through. It happens.

While it is disappointing that things didn’t work out, Nathaniel Joseph and his family made the right decision for them, and I am happy for that and wish them all the best. They wouldn’t have been happy if he enrolled at Clemson. The Tigers will find the right recruits for them, and everybody will be better off in the end.