Clemson football trying to flip five-star Ohio State recruit before signing day

With a new defensive ends coach in the fold, the Clemson football team is making one last run at a five-star recruit ahead of early signing day.

As first revealed Saturday by Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports, five-star 2024 Buford (Ga.) defensive lineman and Ohio State commitment Eddrick Houston visited Clemson last Friday as the Tigers conducted a bowl practice.

TigerNet.com also reported that three Tigers assistant coaches, including newly hired defensive ends coach Chris Rumph, had an in-home visit with Houston earlier in the week.

It’s an intriguing development surrounding Houston, who ranks as the No. 5 defensive lineman and No. 26 overall recruit in the 247Sports Composite rankings and has been verbally committed to the Buckeyes since August.

Earlier in the summer, Houston was on site for Clemson’s blowout official visit weekend in early June. That event, reserved for the Tigers’ top targets, usually generates a few big-time commitments (this cycle, five-star linebacker Sammy Brown, five-star receiver Bryant Wesco and four-star receiver TJ Moore announced commitments within days of the function).

Houston also took a recent visit to Alabama, another school he officially visited before committing to Ohio State in August. The reasoning? There are rumors swirling that Larry Johnson, the Buckeyes’ longtime defensive line coach, is considering retirement, according to reports from 247Sports and TigerNet.

Johnson, 71, has worked at Ohio State since 2014 and coached current NFL stars including Joey Bosa, Nick Bosa and Chase Young at the program. Naturally, he was Houston’s lead recruiter.

Citing a source, Wiltfong reported Sunday that Houston was “covering his bases and doing final research” on Clemson and Alabama, two of the other finalists in his recruitment, in case of Johnson’s retirement. “On the flip side, regarding Johnson, sources around the Buckeyes say there is no indication that’s going to happen,” Wiltfong added.

According to TigerNet, Rumph — who was hired earlier this month to replace Lemanski Hall and has a decorated history coaching defensive ends in the NFL and the SEC — visited Houston in home last week along with defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin and co-DC Mickey Conn.

According to a report from 247Sports’ Brett Greenberg, Houston is still planning to sign a national letter of intent with a school on Wednesday, the first day of college football’s early signing period that runs through Friday.

Houston (6-foot-3, 265 pounds) was an all-region selection in 2023 at Buford, a powerhouse program in the metro Atlanta area. He was credited with 45 total tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hurries, five forced fumbles and five sacks this season.

Clemson made headlines earlier in the month when offensive coordinator Garrett Riley took an in-home visit to see five-star 2024 quarterback recruit and Florida commit DJ Lagway. Lagway was another top Tigers target who committed to the Gators last year.

Coach Dabo Swinney’s program went 8-4 and 4-4 in the ACC this season and finished No. 22 in the final College Football Playoff rankings. The Tigers’ 2024 signing class currently has 18 commits (12 of which are four-star or five-star recruits) and ranks No. 15 nationally in the 247Sports Composite.