Clemson Football: Ronan Hanafin commits to the Tigers

Clemson football received it’s 20th verbal commitment for the Class of 2023 today. Ronan Hanafin of Buckingham Browne & Nichols School in Cambridge, Massachusetts announced his commitment to the Tigers.

Hanafin is classified as an athlete by 247 Sports. It is expected that he will be a receiver for Clemson.

Hanafin is a 4-star recruit in the 247 Composite. He is currently the 287th ranked recruit in the nation, the 18th ranked athlete and 5th ranked player in Massachusetts. He is Clemson’s first player in this cycle from the New England area.

Hanafin also strongly considered Notre Dame. Recently, there have been strong indications that Clemson would be the choice. Rivals’ Tiger Illustrated site projected Hanafin to Clemson, and several 247 personalities, including Director of High School Recruiting, Steve Wiltong, had entered Crystal Balls for Clemson. Even two 247 experts affiliated with their Notre Dane site had entered Clemson Crystal Balls for Hanafin in the past week.

Hanafin is listed as 6’-3” & 206 pounds. He is a two-way player in high school, and his Hudl tape includes several highlights of him playing linebacker as well as receiver. The first highlight, however, is special teams, as Hanafin fields a punt and runs it back for a touchdown. A few highlights in, you will see Hanafin line up a receiver, but the ball does not come his way. Instead, he blocks the cornerback back about ten yards. On defense, Hanafin makes tackles on one highlight and then interceptions in pass coverage.

Clemson football received it’s 20th commitment of the 2023 cycle when 4-star wide receiver Ronan Hanafin pledge to the Tigers

The message is delivered quickly when watching his tape: Hanafin is a versatile, well-rounded football player, and I think this is exactly why Coach Swinney and his staff targeted him. They have stated in the past that they like prospects who play other sports because it shows they are gifted athletes capable of doing multiple things. Hanafin doesn’t need to step onto a diamond or a court to demonstrate this – he does it all on the football field.

While Clemson’s class is almost complete at this point, there are a few more boxes to check off, most notably running back. Clemson appears comfortable with taking their time to fill that opening, as the 2023 high school season is just getting underway. I think it is reasonable to believe that some prospects that haven’t had high profiles will garner attention during their senior season. I wouldn’t be surprised if Clemson’s eventual running back commit for this class is someone who isn’t on our radar right now.