El Campo (Texas) running back Rueben Owens is one of the top rising sophomore prospects in the country, and that is reflected by his lengthy early offer list.

Owens – the No. 1-ranked recruit from the Lone Star State for the 2023 class – is approaching two dozen offers already. His college opportunities are highlighted by schools such as Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Oklahoma, Penn State, Texas and Texas A&M.

“It feels great that schools believe in me so early in my process,” Owens said to The Clemson Insider. “20 offers is a great start, but there’s some schools I’m waiting on to start learning about plus build relationships with.”

One of the coaches Owens would love to get to know on a personal level is Clemson’s Dabo Swinney.

“It would be nice to start building a relationship with Dabo, one of the greatest coaches in college,” he said.

The Tigers don’t offer prospects of Owens’ age, per Swinney’s policy, but Owens hopes they will come calling down the road.

“I’m very interested in Clemson,” he said. “Just waiting on the call.”

Owens and his father have had conversations about Swinney, and Swinney’s program highly appeals to Owens from afar even though he isn’t all that familiar with it.

“I really like everything about Clemson,” he said. “Who wouldn’t want to play for a coach that puts guys in the NFL plus competes for a national championship every year. I really don’t know that much about them, but I want to learn more. My father talks to me about Coach Swinney. We both think he’s a great coach and could help me develop as a player. He’s one of the coaches he wouldn’t mind me playing for.”

Although it is really early in the recruiting process for Owens, a group of programs on his offer list have started to stand out to him.

“There’s some schools like OU, Texas, LSU, USC (Southern Cal), Georgia, Georgia Tech, Texas A&M, Oklahoma State, Penn State,” he listed. “But really all the schools that offered me I’m interested in, just looking for the best fit for me and my family.”

With three years of high school still ahead of him, Owens doesn’t have to worry about making his commitment anytime soon. But when the time comes for him to choose a college in the future, he knows what the important factors in his decision will be.

“I’m looking for a school that fits my style of play, a school with a great strength and conditioning program and nutrition program,” he said. “Plus have a good academic program with a great coaching staff that builds their football players on and off the field.”

Owens slots in as the No. 1 prospect from Texas, No. 2 running back nationally and No. 26 overall prospect in the early 247Sports rankings for the class of 2023. He rushed for over 1,000 yards as a freshman last season and was named the Texas District 13-4A-I Newcomer of the Year. He has also been named to the MaxPreps 2020 Preseason Sophomore All-American Team.

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