DeStefano lets "comfortability" make his decision, will attend Clemson |
SPARTANBURG – Dorman offensive tackle
Patrick DeStefano DeStefano said that word, more than any other, would best describe the university he picked as his choice to play college football. He said that word meant that the place he would choose would be a place he in which felt at home, and that the players and coaches he would be around would feel like family. DeStefano achieved that “comfortability” a few months ago, and made the decision official at a press conference in the press box at Dorman High School Monday afternoon, announcing that he would attend Clemson University. “I am a Clemson Tiger,” DeStefano said in front of his coaches, family and teammates Monday. “It’s the comfortability factor. It’s the home factor. Every one of their players loves being there, and they are having the time of their lives. And, you just get a good feeling every time you walk into that stadium. There is no other place, other than Dorman, where I feel at home like I do there.” DeStefano said that he made his decision all the way back on March 12th, and had been mulling over his feelings since that time. “It was after that Penn St. visit on the flight home,” he said. “It just occurred to me. I loved Penn St., but even that couldn’t beat Clemson out. I told Jeff and Brad Scott on my overnight trip to Clemson on March 23rd, but we held off on telling Coach [Dabo] Swinney until a few weeks ago. He said he was pleasantly surprised and that it was a great day.” DeStefano’s father, Frank, played the offensive line at Duke and in the NFL, and he said he was excited about his son’s decision. “I told him he had to find players he was comfortable with,” Frank DeStefano said. “I said ‘Look, coaches come and go, but universities will be there. You have to find players you like.’ There are guys I played with at Duke, and we have remained close friends since I left there in 1978. I told him you have to find guys you are comfortable with, because they are going to be your friends for a lifetime. He found those guys, and he found the school that fit his criteria. I think it is a great choice. I don’t think any of the schools he looked at were bad, he was just most comfortable at Clemson.” DeStefano said he still plans on graduating in December and enrolling in Clemson in January, and he said the time in between now and then will be spent helping both schools. “I wanted to get this process over with,” he said. “Now that I have made it, I can help out the other recruits that I have made friends with, and I can help them make their decision. Even if they don’t choose Clemson, I can still help them. And I can also help out my new coaching staff. “Now, I have to concentrate on getting bigger, better and stronger. I want to finish out my Dorman career strong. This is a way that I can concentrate on Dorman High School, and my current teammates, and we can accomplish what we want to accomplish out on the football field this fall. I wouldn’t be where I am without Dorman, the fans and the coaches, and I want to help reward them.” 
AUDIO: Patrick DeStefano interview with David Hood after announcement
AUDIO: Dorman head coach introducing DeStefano and then DeStefano announcing his decision AUDIO: Patrick DeStefano talking to reporters after the announcement AUDIO: Patrick DeStefano's father talking to reporters 
Patrick DeStefano
Offensive Line
6-4, 275
Roebuck, SC
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told TigerNet a few months ago that he wanted to coin a new word: Comfortability.
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