Boonville (Mo.) four-star defensive end DJ Wesolak knows how selective Clemson is with its scholarship offers and that the Tigers are judicious with which prospects they target.

So, when the class of 2022 recruit picked up an offer from Clemson this week, the offer meant a lot to him.

“It’s honestly a blessing because if you’ve ever looked at how many schools people offer, Clemson’s probably one or two that has the least amount of given offers,” Wesolak said to The Clemson Insider. “So, it’s a blessing to be recognized by them.”

Wesolak received the offer from defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall on Sunday following a lengthy conversation with defensive coordinator Brent Venables last Saturday.

“Coach V talked to me, called me (Saturday) on like a 45-minute call,” Wesolak said. “He wanted to get to know me, get to know each other, just talking about Clemson, what they have to offer. Then Coach Hall called me (Sunday). He asked me how I felt about everything, then offered me. He was excited and ready to go.”

Boonville (Mo.) 4-star DE DJ Wesolak

Hall and Venables let Wesolak know they love what they have seen from the 6-foot-6, 235-pound prospect on his highlight tape.

“They said they’ve watched my film multiple times over and over again the past couple of days,” Wesolak said. “So, it’s a blessing. It’s really humbling.”

In his first season playing defensive end as a junior in 2020, Wesolak posted 59 total tackles, including 19 for loss and eight sacks.

“They know I have a lot of potential in my position,” Wesolak said of Hall and Venables. “They know I’ve only played this position for a year. I was a middle linebacker, so they know they want to use me more than just an outside pass rusher. They love how athletic I am off the ball and how fast I can be, how violent I am with my play style. But they know I can work better with my hands, and that just comes with being a young player at this position. They said any position could do better with their handwork. But they love and feel like I’m one of the best players at my position.”

Wesolak and Hall have been in contact for the past month and a half or so and have built a strong relationship.

“Me and Coach Hall are really close,” Wesolak said. “We just talk about anything, from football, life, my interest in schools. He helps me with a lot. He’s one of the coaches I go to if I have a question about something, if I feel like I’m pressured about something, about a school or anywhere, and he gives great advice. He’s not really biased. He’s open about everything.”

Wesolak, who holds nearly 40 total offers, wants to make some visits to schools such as Clemson, Notre Dame, Alabama, Arizona and Cal before narrowing down his recruitment. Right now, he feels Clemson, Notre Dame, Missouri, Texas, Oregon, Arizona State and Alabama are among the schools recruiting him the hardest.

Wesolak hasn’t released an official group of his top schools to this point in the process, but he says if he did have a formal list of favorites, Clemson would certainly be on it.

“If I happened to have one, they’d definitely be on there,” he said. “Obviously I love what they have to offer. They have morals, education, football, life after football – they’re really strict on trying to get their players ready for after football. So, I definitely have high interest in them.”

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