Clemson Tigers News: Early signing day, All-State Kicker, Academic All-American

Today is the early signing day for the Clemson Tigers football class of 2023.  As we pointed out yesterday, almost half of the Class of 2023 plans to enroll early, but even those that don’t enroll early can still sign today.

Simple math tells me we can expect at least 12 recruits to sign and fax letters today, but I’d imagine the vast majority of the class will do so, and it’ll be the exception if one of the current commits doesn’t submit the NLI.

By the end of Wednesday, Clemson could have 26 total players signed for the class, which would make the 2023 cycle the largest class since 2019, when the Tigers signed 29 players.

One of Clemson’s 2024 commits, kicker Nolan Hauser, was named to the inaugural North Carolina Sportswriters All-State high school football First-team. This is the third 1st team All-State selection of Hauser’s career, having previously been honored as a freshman and sophomore as well.

Clemson running back Will Shipley was named an Academic All-American, becoming the first Tiger running back to ever be given the honor. He is Clemson’s first Academic All-American since Dalton Freeman in 2012.

He was also named a finalist for Blanchard-Rogers Trophy as the outstanding collegiate player in the state of South Carolina.

The Clemson Tigers returned to the hardcourt for midweek action

Clemson Women’s Basketball soundly defeated Radford 81-38 on Tuesday afternoon. Marty Coleman has more on that game here.

Clemson Men’s Basketball plays the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in Atlanta this evening at 7:30 PM. Rubbing The Rock will have more on this matchup later today.

In NFL news, Sammy Watkins was cut by Green Bay Packers on Monday before they took on the Los Angeles Rams. Watkins is healthy and could be an option for playoff teams if they are looking to add depth to their roster before the postseason starts. It wouldn’t have been a shock for an NFL team to pick him up off waivers, and that is exactly what happened.

The Ravens are in the hunt for a wildcard berth, but an injury to Lamar Jackson will make the last month of the season a roller coaster for Baltimore.