Clemson defensive tackles coach Nick Eason has had his eyes on DT Malik Blocton (6-3 268) of Pike Road, AL dating back to when he was working at Auburn. Eason coached Blocton’s brother while on The Plains, and now he’s in position to have the younger Blocton under his direction.
“Coach Eason, for sure, is recruiting me, Blocton said. “He’s been recruiting me since he was at Auburn, so me and Coach Eason have a good relationship. My brother is a defensive lineman at Auburn, so he coached my brother, and he will probably have a chance to coach me too. He has a good relationship with my mom and my little sister. He’s really a part of the family. My cousin passed away when he was at Auburn, and he made sure he came down to comfort our family. He’s a real stand-up guy.”
Blocton is a heavily recruited prospect. His other offers include South Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Oregon, Tennessee, Maryland, Kentucky, Kansas, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Texas, Louisville, Florida, Missouri and Arizona State. But right now, he has some clarity about which school has separated from the pack.
“They’re (Clemson) at the top. I’m probably going to wait until signing day in December (to make a decision),” he said. “I want to go somewhere I can go in and play early. Somewhere where I can be developed, win games, win championships, and give me a chance to go to the league.”
Blocton attended the Clemson junior day January 21st. He also was in for a game in October. He has seen Eason’s work with the interior defensive linemen and how they work against the run. He could see himself fitting right in with that.
“I love to compete. I love to stop the run,” Blocton said. “I love to pass rush, but stopping the run is my bread and butter. I play with my hands a lot, so I try to get a lot of knockdowns at the line of scrimmage and stuff like that.”
Blocton plans to visit Auburn this Friday. He’s also been to Ole Miss, Auburn, Tennessee and Alabama for unofficial visits.
Clemson has one commitment from a defensive tackle for the 2024 class in Champ Thompson of Norcross, GA. The Tigers are also heavily involved with DT Hevin Brown-Shuler of Atlanta and are showing interest in DT Marcus Downs of Riverside.
