4-star QB Trace Hawkins choosing Clemson shows he has full faith in Dabo Swinney's staff

On Thursday evening, four-star quarterback Trace Hawkins committed to the Clemson Tigers. He became their first commit of the 2028 cycle. The Calhoun, Georgia, standout picked Clemson over Duke, Kentucky, LSU, Vanderbilt, and Virginia Tech entering his junior year of high school. To Hawkins, this was an easy decision for him. He expounded upon it as much when speaking to Chad Simmons.

As for why he picked Clemson, Hawkins "felt like it was home" for him from the first time he visited.

"First time I stepped on campus at Death Valley, I just felt like it was home," Hawkins said. "Me and Coach [Tajh] Boyd, Coach [Chad] Morris, Coach [Dabo] Swinney, we just have that connection that I feel will take me all the way."

Hawkins was so excited to get to work with Clemson legend Tajh Boyd as his quarterbacks coach.

"He's so upfront with you. He's not going to sugarcoat anything," Hawkins continued. "They told me if I'm coming here, I need to be ready to work and compete for the spot. He's real with you."

As far as how Hawkins feels about playing for Dabo Swinney, he cannot wait to be mentored by him.

"The first time I was there, I could truly see how he wants to build you up as a person, instead of as a player," Hawkins said. "He wants to build you up as a player, but also as a person in life, lead you the right way, and create great goals for you."

To wrap up his interview segment with Simmons, here is what Hawkins says he brings to the table.

"They're getting a dog. They're getting a versatile player, in and out of the pocket," Hawkins finished. "I love to create plays for my teammates."

Here is everything that Hawkins had to say to Simmons about why he decided to commit to Clemson.

Clearly, Swinney and his coaching staff still have a solid recruiting base in and around North Georgia.

Dabo Swinney continues to win in recruitment with his kind of players

Once it became fairly obvious that Hawkins was going to commit to Clemson on July 30, that really took some pressure off Swinney and his staff in terms of getting this 2028 recruiting class ignited. While there had been several offers out there to be had, nobody had committed to Clemson prior to Hawkins putting his full trust and faith into Swinney moving forward. This shows he still has his base.

While Boyd, offensive coordinator Chad Morris, and the rest of Swinney's coaching staff have put in the necessary work to build up an underrated 2027 recruiting class, Hawkins now becomes the first cornerstone upon which the 2028 batch of Clemson commits will be based. This goes to show how important it was for the three coaches in question to get a quarterback from out of their backyard.

Although three-star Trey Wright was crystal balled to Clemson a few days before Hawkins, he is not by any stretch of the imagination a local product. Frisco, Texas is a long way from Clemson, South Carolina. That being said, Hawkins' willingness to be brave enough to be the first Clemson commit of 2028 speaks volumes. It tells us Swinney and his staff can always find recruiting wins closer to home.

With Hawkins saying all the right things about Clemson, it is a matter of time before recruits commit.

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