Two Louisiana standouts turn the tables and recruit Clemson

Trevon Stewart (pictured above) said both recruits will commit to Clemson if offered.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Thu May 05 21:08:41 GMT-04:00 2011

The college football recruiting process usually entails college coaches using their best sales skills as they try to convince 17-and-18-year olds that their school is the best place and the best fit.

However, it’s not often that you see two good high school players reversing the tables on the coaches trying to use their own sales skills in order to convince a university that they would be the perfect fit for the school, but that’s the case with two of Louisiana’s best defensive players in the 2012 recruiting class.

Defensive back Trevon Stewart Trevon Stewart
Defensive Back
5-9, 185
Patterson, LA
View Full Profile and linebacker Lorenzo Phillips of Patterson High School have both decided that Clemson is the place they want to be – Philliips has already backed out on an earlier commitment to Texas A&M – and will treat their attendance at Clemson’s camp in June as essentially a tryout camp.

In fact, the pair has decided to blow off a scheduled trip to Nebraska and the Huskers’ camp in order to attend the Clemson camp.

“We feel like Clemson is the number one school for us, and we want to go to school together,” Stewart told TigerNet Thursday afternoon. “We like it, and our parents like it a lot. We think we can go to Clemson and get offers from the coaches. If we do, then that is where we want to go. Their tradition is great, while they aren’t that far from home, they aren’t that close, either.”

Stewart moved from safety to cornerback his sophomore season and led his conference with nine interceptions. As a junior, he moved back to safety and still tallied over 100 tackles despite missing three games, and he said that former Clemson cornerback Marcus Gilchrist is someone he patterns his game after.

“The reason I like him so much is because he is such a smart player,” said Stewart, who said that Texas A&M, LSU, Southern Miss and Houston are showing the most interest. “Sometimes on our defense, the linebacker makes the call, but sometimes I will see the formation and switch it up. I feel comfortable making defensive calls. I know both sides of the game because I have played offense. I am a Marcus Gilchrist-type of player.”

Stewart (5-9, 185) said that new defensive line coach Marion Hobby has been in contact with the pair, and extended the invitation to come to camp.

“I have been talking to Coach Hobby on the phone and on Facebook a pretty good bit,” Stewart said. “We talked about an offer, and he said he wanted to see us in camp. I have been to Clemson before, and I really like everything about it. He wanted to know if they offered would we commit and I told him yes.”

Phillips (6-1, 200) said he likes the defensive tradition at Clemson.

“That is the type of school I have been looking for,” he said. “I feel like I have a chance to play there. The same school hasn’t offered both me and Trevon yet, and we really hope that is the school that does it. I know Clemson had the big recruiting class with linebackers last year, and that is what I want. I want someone to put pressure on me and make me play better.”

Phillips has offers from Texas A&M, LSU, Nebraska, Baylor, Indiana and Pitt, and he said he backed off the earlier commitment to the Aggies because he wanted to see what else was out there.

“I wanted to see a lot more,” he said. “I felt like I let my emotions take over, just based on seeing two colleges. I sat down with my family and talked about it, and they said go and take other visits. I can always commit back to them if I need or want to. I want to visit a couple of more schools, but I’m hoping Clemson will offer and if they do, it’s a done deal.”

Phillips said the Texas A&M coaches told him that he reminds them of Von Miller, the former Aggie linebacker who was taken second overall by the Denver Broncos in the NFL Draft last week, but he said he also feels comfortable at safety.

“They told me they thought I was better than Von coming out of high school, which was a big compliment,” he said. “I don’t care if the school plays a 4-3, 3-4 or a 5-2 defense, I am ready to play. I have done my research and I know Clemson plays a lot of 4-3. I would fit in really well there. I can cover receivers and I can blitz and get to the quarterback. I am just going to go up there and show them what I’ve got.”