Clemson tight end commit Sage Ennis and his Lincoln (Tallahassee, Fla.) High School team were motivated and determined to start their season off on the right foot Friday night.

That is exactly what they did in a 32-12 win over Godby (Tallahassee) at Lincoln’s Cox Stadium.

The Clemson Insider recently caught up with Ennis about the season-opening victory and much more.

“We were so pumped to play Godby,” he said. “We didn’t get to play our (preseason) Kickoff Classic due to weather, so that got cancelled. And last year we lost to Godby, so we’ve had it marked on the calendar. The school, we had a pep rally. Everybody was excited for it, and really we were just ready for it. We wanted to win more than they did. We wanted to play at a higher level, be more physical, and that’s what happened.”

Ennis (6-4, 225) played a big role in the win, recording several catches including a touchdown reception, while also rushing for around 80 yards as a wildcat quarterback.

“I feel like I did pretty good, but there’s always room for improvement,” he said. “So, when we go over the film and we talk about it, I always look for the mistakes I made – not just how I did overall but look for the mistakes.”

While Ennis is focused on winning games with his own squad, he is also excited to watch Clemson play this fall and will be cheering on the Tigers.

“I think they’ll do pretty good,” he said. “The offense looks good, Trevor Lawrence coming back for his second year, and Tee Higgins and Justyn Ross… I know the defensive line, they lost some key players. But I feel like the coaching and everybody there, I feel like the preparation for them is going to be good. I think they’ll have a really good season, win the ACC Championship and go on to be in the playoffs, and I’m pulling for them to win a national championship.”

Expect Ennis to be at Death Valley for at least one game during the season. He plans to take an official visit at some point and is looking to possibly make an unofficial visit for the Tigers’ game against Texas A&M on Sept. 7.

“I know for sure I’m coming on the official,” he said. “I’m not sure when that is yet. They haven’t told us, but I would like to come on that. And if I could get an unofficial in there, I would. But seeing that it’s six hours away and we usually play on Friday nights, it’s kind of hard to do that during the season.”

Ennis, who committed to Clemson on June 17, has been keeping in touch with the staff including tight ends coach Danny Pearman and offensive analyst Tyler Grisham.

“I just talked to them the other day,” Ennis said. “I always like to stay in contact with all the coaches there. … Coach Pearman and Coach Grisham, I sent them my highlights from my Godby game, and they said that they liked it.”

It won’t be long before Ennis joins the Tigers. He is set to be a mid-year enrollee and can’t wait to start his Clemson career in January.

“Ever since I committed, I knew I was going to early enroll,” he said. “So, the anticipation is definitely building, but I’m staying focused on the season right now. But I think about it every day.”

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