Palmetto State's No. 1 player calls Clemson offer “a blessing”

Amare Adams values the NFL experience that coaches like Nick Eason have.

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Sat Jun 17 07:00:19 GMT-04:00 2023

CLEMSON - Defensive tackle Amare Adams out of Florence is considered to be South Carolina's No. 1 player in the 2025 recruiting class. ESPN ranks him as the No. 3 defensive tackle in the country and he is seen as the No. 76 overall best prospect. Just because he has received an offer does not mean he can stop working, something he is well aware of.

“‘Don’t get lazy, man. Don’t get complacent,’” Adams said Clemson’s coaches were telling him. “‘Keep grinding, keep (working) hard, because that offer don’t mean nothing. It’s for your potential.’”

Adams is a highly sought-after player, with his offer list also including Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Ohio State, Tennessee, Florida State and South Carolina. Per 247Sports, the Gamecocks holds a pair of predictions for where he will end up, but a lot can change between now and when he makes his decision, especially because he still has two more years left of high school. Still, he understands that he is part of an elite class of players to even receive an offer from the Tigers.

“It’s a blessing, because having these kids even get an offer … Just to be one of those kids, get an offer from Clemson,” Adams said. “It’s just a blessing.”

He has already started working with some of the coaches, including assistant coach and defensive tackles coach Nick Eason. Eason played nine seasons in the NFL, primarily as a defensive tackle. He spent three seasons with the Cleveland Browns, four with the Pittsburgh Steelers and finished his season with the Arizona Cardinals. Because he has this NFL experience, Adams believes Eason has a gift to be able to relate to the players and show them how to get to the professional level.

“I feel like he (saw) it all just from being a player to the coach, because (of) the way he went to the league for both of them,” Adams stated. “He (saw) how you got (to be) in the NFL, so he (is) going to push you to be that great. That’s (what) I like about Coach Eason.”

Defense is always a focus for Clemson recruiting classes as the Tigers have already offered seven defensive linemen and 19 defensive players in the 2025 recruiting class. None of them have made a decision yet, but Adams already has a timeline for making his decision, which should be by the beginning of his senior year. However, part of his decision-making process will be attending the Clemson vs Florida State game on September 23 of this year.

If he chooses to come to the Tigers, he will join an elite defensive class who just had two players get drafted in the first round with Bryan Bresee and Myles Murphy. In addition, he would be playing with freshman Peter Woods. Woods has not even played in a regular season game yet and is already impressing coaches with his natural talent and skills at the defensive lineman position.

Further, Clemson has a propensity to have their veteran players stick around for a long time as shown by sixth-year players such as Xavier Thomas and fifth-year players like Tyler Davis, who was tied for third in sacks last year with 5.5. Any young players, therefore, will have the benefit of playing alongside experienced players.