Brent Venables and Mike Reed made their presence known in south Florida earlier this year when they dispensed several offers to the area’s top prospects.

Among those to pick up a Clemson offer was cornerback Benny Sapp III. The son of the former NFL cornerback, Sapp is a 5-10, 160-pound sophomore with offers from some of the country’s top programs.

Reed stopped by St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale earlier this fall, to check in on Sapp and several of his teammates.

“He was telling me to come visit up there. I’m going to try to get up there,” Sapp said.

Clemson stands out.

“I’ll say I’ve got a top-three…Florida No. 1, Florida State No. 2 and Clemson,” he said.

Sapp detailed the specifics that he likes about each school.

Florida: Ever since I was a kid, Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin, I’m a real big fan of them, so they’re the ones that made me a Gator fan.

Florida State: I just like how the school is and the coaches up there.

Clemson: When Mike Reed, when we had a talk…he gave me a good impression of how it’s supposed to be.

On Thursday, Sapp will head to Sun Life Stadium to watch Clemson play Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl. He’ll be there with Asante Samuel Jr., another Clemson offered cornerback whose father played in the NFL.

“They’re doing real, real good. At first, I really thought they weren’t going to make it to the playoff. They’re really proving me wrong right now,” Sapp said of Clemson.

He watched the Tigers on TV when they beat Florida State.

“Their defensive style reminds me of me playing. And their offense, they’ve got a good scheme,” Sapp said.