USC and Clemson have a common recruiting target in Georgia. OG Elyjah Thurmon (6-5 275) of Hinesville, GA was offered by the Gamecocks after they saw him in camp in June. He also camped at Clemson and the Tigers, after missing on some other targets, made their offer earlier this month.
Both USC and Clemson invited Thurmon to visit Friday for their respective cookouts, but he had already made plans to go to LSU. He also visited Georgia Tech earlier in the week. He said he does plan to set official visits with the Gamecocks and Tigers for the fall.
In the meantime, USC coach Shane Beamer and offensive line coach Lonnie Teasley are keeping in touch with Thurmon.
“It’s just been me and Coach Teasley. He’s so fired up about me coming there,” Thurmon said. “I texted Coach Beamer twice since then. They’ve been sending me all types of letters letting me know how excited they are about me and how badly they want me to get down there. Coach Teasley just sees me as a great fit with my athleticism and my IQ of the game.”
Clemson immediately became a factor with Thurmon after offensive line coach Thomas Austin got the thumbs up from Dabo Swinney to proceed with the offer.
“That offer was surprising to me,” Thurmon said. “Coach Austin called me and we were just talking normally. He then told me he had a surprise for me right there on the phone. It kind of shocked me for a second, because that offer right there was one I’ve wanted for a while. What stands out are the atmosphere, the legendary Coach Swinney himself and Clemson is just immaculate.”
Thurmon added that Austin sees much the same things in him as his counterpart at USC.
“Athleticism, I’m mean off the ball, and I have a great motor,” Thurmon said. “Never stop. Disciplined. Just everything I think that they would love to have on their team.”
Thurmon also has offers from Florida, Duke, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Missouri, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Tech and others. He said there’s no frontrunner with him at this point.
