Clemson’s Recruiting Class Unraveling: 3 Decommits Since September

As the Clemson Tigers football program continues to push through one of their worst seasons in recent history, their ability to effectively recruit is starting to take a hit.

Since Sept. 25, the Tigers have lost commitments from three key recruits, most recently defensive lineman Keshawn Stancil, who announced that he would be flipping his commitment to Miami.

Stancil had originally shut down his recruitment in July, but while Clemson is fighting to finish with a winning record, Miami has established itself as a College Football Playoff contender over the past two seasons.

“When I first went down there, it felt like home,” Stancil told On3’s Steve Wiltfong. “Clemson always felt like home for me so it was a hard decision.”

The North Carolina native took an official visit to Miami back in May, but ultimately committed to Clemson shortly after taking a visit in June.

According to 247Sports’ composite rankings, Stancil is the 10th-best prospect in the state of North Carolina and the 23rd-best defensive line recruit in the nation.

Dominoes Are Starting To Fall

Stancil is the second player to decommit from Clemson this week, and the third player to take back their pledge in just over a month.

Earlier in the week, safety Blake Stewart announced that he would be decommitting from Clemson. The Georgia native was the Tigers’ third-highest rated defensive recruit, also holding offers from prestigious programs like Georgia, Michigan and Florida.

According to 247Sports composite ratings, Stewart has earned an 89 out of 100 prospect ranking as the 35th-best safety in the country and the 47th-best overall prospect in the state of Georgia.

Last month, edge rusher Dre Quinn decommitted from Clemson shortly after breaking head coach Dabo Swinney’s unwritten rule that bars committed players from visiting other programs

According to 247Sports composite ratings, Quinn has earned an 89.33 out of 100 prospect ranking as the 36th-best edge in the country and the 43rd-best overall prospect in the state of Georgia.

While Clemson’s College Football Playoff hopes may be out of the picture, these recent decommitments highlight how valuable the final five games of the season are.

If the Tigers can finish the season on a strong note, recruits may feel more inclined to stick with their commitments and remain hopeful about the program’s future. But if Clemson continues to struggle, the decommitments could keep piling up as uncertainty grows about the team’s direction.

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