His recruiting process is really just getting started, but Brentwood (Tenn.) Academy four-star offensive lineman Eli Sutton is already on Clemson’s radar for the 2021 cycle.
Sutton — a big 6-foot-7, 275-pound sophomore prospect – participated in the Dabo Swinney Camp last summer and recently drew a visit at his school from Clemson assistant coach Lemanski Hall, his area recruiter, during the NCAA contact period.
“Coach Hall likes my potential and wants to keep an eye on me throughout the spring and summer,” Sutton told TCI.
Clemson certainly isn’t the only school that has taken notice of Sutton’s potential early on. In fact, he has already racked up over a dozen offers, from Florida, LSU, Texas A&M, Kentucky, South Carolina, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Missouri, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Louisville, Nebraska and Purdue.
The Tigers typically do not offer underclassmen prospects, but if they decide to pull the trigger on an offer Sutton in the future, he said that the Tigers “would be very high on my list.”
“The program is so prestigious and the atmosphere of campus is great,” he said. “However I have yet to see the academics of Clemson and the daily life of a player there so I will have to investigate that aspect.”
Sutton has not yet set a specific visit date but said he plans to return to Clemson sometime in the spring. When he gets back on campus, he is looking “to see the day-to-day operations of the program, how practice is run, what the coaches are truly like, etc.”
Sutton cited Florida, LSU and South Carolina as the schools that have stood out to him recently. His recruitment is still in the early stages, though, and he doesn’t appear to be in a rush to render his decision.
“When I find a school that I can use to further my development as a football player but more importantly as a man and a student, I will commit to that program,” he said.
Sutton is the No. 1 prospect from the state of Tennessee, No. 9 offensive tackle and No. 80 overall prospect in the 2021 class according to the early 247Sports rankings.
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