4-star DE commits to Clemson

by Tony Crumpton - Assoc. Editor - Jul 24, 2015, 2:06 PM

Xavier Kelly - Defensive End
TigerNet: (4.48)

Height: 6-5 Weight: 255 Hometown: Wichita, KS (East HS) Class: 2016

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4-star 2016 defensive end Xavier Kelly from Wichita, Kansas committed to Clemson on Friday afternoon during a live ESPN RecruitingNation webcast.

Kelly said moments before his announcement "I wanna go to a school where I feel comfortable. A school with good academics and a place that I can excel."

He chose the Tigers over his other finalists - Alabama, Florida State, Michigan and Georgia.

The 4-star recruit said Clemson was a "perfect fit" for him and Clemson was a 10. He said that he will not take any official visit besides Clemson after his commitment today. He said the main reason he chose Clemson was that it had a "family feel" and "felt like home".

He is thinking of majoring in Business at Clemson but not 100% sure.

The commitment is a huge get for the Clemson coaching staff as he has loads of potential and is a consensus high 4-star recruit by all the major recruiting services.

Clemson projects him as a big defensive end in their future positional plans.

The talented defensive end prospect spoke with TigerNet.com last Sunday after visiting Clemson for its All-In Cookout event.

"The visit was great," Kelly said. "I got the opportunity to meet some of the players and the current commits. I had a chance to talk with the coaches. We all had a good time."

"Coach Venables and Coach Hobby were just telling me nothing but great things about Clemson and giving me a lot of good reasons why I should go there," Kelly said. "They were telling me that they really need me and I'm in a perfect position to come at this time. I love everything about Clemson. It's a family environment, and they are all about academics. They really care about their players outside of the football field."

His total list of offers include Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Baylor, Clemson, Colorado, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kansas State, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Oregon, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Penn State, TCU, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Wisconsin. Clemson offered on 3/25/15 after he de-committed from Kansas State on 3/21/15.

Kelly got several schools attention when he measured in at 6'5" and 230 pounds and ran a SPARQ verified 4.55 40-yard dash at the Nike Dallas Regional "The Opening." Some other verified measurables from that day included a 4.47 shuttle, 30.9-inch vertical jump and a 36' power ball throw. He also recently accepted an invite to the U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

He is also a standout basketball player who led East high to the 6A state title.