Clemson ‘sold out’ on Deshaun Watson and it has paid off in a big way
Recruiting has become more important than ever. To win on Saturday, a program must work tirelessly for much of the year to build a recruiting class capable of competing against the very best.
Nowadays, it’s becoming more common for major programs to offer elite prospects before their 16th birthday. Getting in early with a talented prospect can give a school a leg up on the competition, but it’s certainly a risky proposition.
Clemson took that risk with a rising sophomore quarterback from Gainesville, Ga., named Deshaun Watson.
The Gainesville High School quarterback attended a Clemson football camp in the summer of 2011 and left with his first college scholarship offer. It was a bold move at a time when that type of thing wasn’t common, but it paid off mightily for the Tigers.
“I think Clemson got on him real early,” Gainesville head coach Bruce Miller told Saturday Down South. “Coming out of his freshman year, they got on him, and I think he just fell in love with Clemson.”
It was a display of faith from the Tigers. A lot of things can go wrong over the course of a high school career, but Clemson believed Watson was the player they had to have, long before he earned the No. 1 rank among dual-threat quarterbacks in the 2014 class.
Because of the inherent risk in offering a prospect so young, it would have been understandable if the Tigers had made a few backup offers in the process. Instead, Clemson doubled down on the bet.
“I think Clemson just sold out to him,” Miller said. “I mean, they didn’t recruit another quarterback in his class. They told him that (he’s) going to be (their) quarterback the year after next and that (he) may start as a freshman.”
That commitment to Watson helped Clemson fend off the likes of Alabama, hometown Georgia, just 50 minutes away, Florida State and Ohio State. Dabo Swinney showed a belief in Watson at an early age, and it proved to be a monumental decision.
Now, more than five years after the Tigers sold out on Watson, he is preparing to lead them in the national championship game for the second consecutive season.
Watson quickly developed into one of the best players in college football, and he put his immense talent on full display in last year’s title game against a vaunted Alabama defense. The Clemson quarterback accounted for 478 total yards and 4 touchdowns in the 45-40 loss, breaking Vince Young’s yardage record in a national championship game.
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Despite the loss, it was the type of performance that launched the Georgia native into superstardom. Watson, a 2015 Heisman finalist, entered the 2016 season as one of the favorites to win it. Although he’s had a tremendous season in many aspects, many believe Watson has taken a small step back from last year.
Miller believes he can explain why it appears that way.
“I think people are preparing for him a lot differently. Until the end of the year last year, people thought ‘Oh, he’s good, but there’s other people we need to stop,’” Miller told SDS. “Now, they’re having to worry about what Deshaun can do not just physically, but what he can do mentally against them.”
In short, teams are giving Clemson and Watson their best shot. Despite that, he’s led them right back to the national championship game for a rematch against Alabama.
The Crimson Tide are in the midst of a truly remarkable season. Their defense is arguably the best Nick Saban has ever had, and the offense is scoring at a program-record pace behind a dual-threat quarterback. Very few teams have pushed Alabama this year, but Clemson certainly is capable of doing that and possibly more.
Some believe the Tigers will hand the Tide their first loss of the year, Miller included.
“Well, this is my opinion, and opinions are like armpits: We’ve all got one,” Miller joked. “(Alabama) hasn’t faced an offense like this one yet. There’s no weakness on that offense. Now, my question is, can Clemson’s offensive line handle Alabama’s defensive line? If they can do that, I think it could be a very very close game and, hopefully, Clemson will win it.”
If the Tigers do manage to beat back the Tide and bring home the national championship trophy, the accomplishment can be traced back, in part, to a football camp in the summer of 2011.
At a time when few programs took a chance on players just beginning their high school careers, Clemson took that risk. With Watson leading the Tigers back to the title game, that risk has paid off.
