Sometimes, it’s hard to say “no.”
It’s even harder to say “no” when you have a decision to make and you are getting pressured from outside forces on all sides.
In 2014, Clemson defensive end Clelin Ferrell had a decision to make.
Ironically Ferrell, known for his ability to bring pressure to opposing quarterbacks on the field, had to face some pressure of his own.
Ferrell, a redshirt sophomore from Richmond, Virginia, was recruited heavily by the Virginia Tech Hokies and wanted him to stay home and play right in his backyard.
“That’s the home school,” Ferrell said. “They recruit just as hard as a Georgia recruits the state of Georgia. It’s really, really strong on how hard they recruit you when you’re living in Virginia.”
When the premiere football school in Virginia pushed hard for him, it was hard to say “no.” Even Ferrell’s entire family was all in on the Hokies.
But Ferrell was all in on Dabo Swinney and that Clemson defense.
When he made his decision, Ferrell decided that he would call the main schools that recruited him and tell them the news in the nicest way possible.
Ferrell might have wished that his call to Virginia Tech had gone straight to voicemail.
“When I called and told (Virginia Tech), it wasn’t the best conversation with him (a coach),” Ferrell said Tuesday. “I’m not going to tell you who it was but let’s just say he kind of cussed me out a little bit. But it was all good because we had built a close relationship and he just kind of didn’t understand why I chose Clemson over Virginia Tech, but it’s all fun and games now. It’s in the past.”
Ferrell knows a good amount of guys on Virginia Tech’s team and also has a lot of friends from high school who attend the school. He’s probably heard from many of them since before the ACC championship last December.
He said he is planning on looking past that one phone call this weekend, but Ferrell played with a chip on his shoulder when the Tigers played the Hokies last season.
“I go into every game with a chip on my shoulder. That I-have-something-to-prove mentality,” Ferrell said. “When we played them last year, me being a young guy, I did kind of think about it last year. But this year, I mean, no. That’s not really what I'm looking for.”
Ferrell has 18 total tackles, three of them solo, one sack and a forced fumble so far this season. He had six total tackles, two of them for loss, and one sack last season against the hometown school in the ACC championship.
