New Tigers Hit Campus

by Will Vandervort - Correspondent - Fri Jul 07 19:01:17 GMT-04:00 2006

Special to TigerNet from the Seneca Daily Journal/Clemson Messenger

CLEMSON --- All but three of Clemson's 2006 football recruiting class enrolled in classes Thursday for the July summer session which begins on Friday.

Because of an NCAA rule that started in the summer of 2005, incoming freshmen can enroll in summer classes in July and begin voluntary workouts with the rest of the team.

The only three not to make it to campus Thursday were running back JoJo Cox of Jeffersonville, Ga., wide receiver Kendrick Johnson of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and safety DeAndre McDaniel of Tallahassee, Fla.

McDaniel told The State (Columbia) newspaper last week he will not enroll at Clemson this fall because he failed to meet the NCAA standards. As for Cox and Johnson, there was no word on whether or not they qualified. Currently, both are expected to meet up with the team when the players report in early August for fall camp.

Some publications had the 6-foot, 185-pound McDaniel as one of the Tigers' top recruits. A two way standout as a receiver and safety in high school, he had three interceptions as a senior with 58 tackles as well as eight interceptions as a junior with 53 tackles. McDaniel was ranked by several websites and publications as one of the nation's top 100 high school players, including 72nd by collegefootballnews.com.

According to the report in The State, McDaniel fell two points shy of achieving the necessary score to qualify. He hopes to enroll in a prep school this fall where he will have to go through the entire recruiting process again.

As for Clemson's two other highly profiled recruits -- running back C.J. Spiller of Lake Butler, Fla., and defensive end Ricky Sapp of Bamberg -- both enrolled for summer classes and will start working out with the team immediately.

Whether or not Spiller was going to enroll for classes early was unclear this spring after ESPN said he was one of several 2006 recruits across the country being considered for a new television show. However, those plans didn't pan out and he was able to enroll for freshmen classes a month early.

2006 Signees

1. Jacoby Ford WR Fork Union, VA

2. Jeffrey Ogren WR Tuscaloosa, AL

3. Chris Russell DB Nashville, TN

4. Michael Palmer TE Lilburn, GA

5. Ricky Sapp DL Bamberg, SC

6. Jamal Medlin OL Orangeburg, SC

7. Jamie Cumbie DL Morris, IL

8. Byron Maxwell DB North Charleston, SC

9. Crezdon Butler DB Asheville, NC

10. Chris Hairston OL Winston-Salem, NC

11. Darius Gaither DB Winnsboro, SC