Christmas Came Early: Clemson's Historic Early Signing Period

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It’s one of the best scenes in The Polar Express.

The main character, a little boy, gets picked from a cast thousands to sit with Santa on Christmas Eve before he takes off into the night.

Santa asks in front of everyone a simple, yet staggering question: “Now, what would you like for Christmas?”

“Me?” The boy replied. “You,” Santa said. The boy whispers into Santa’s ear, and Santa pulls out a small gift, nodding in approval. He holds it up for the world to see.

“The first gift of Christmas!” Santa yells as the crowd lets out a thunderous cheer.

In a real-world scenario, the little boy is Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney and “the first gift of Christmas” is the new Early Signing Period.

Swinney sat down to address the media Wednesday morning like a kid on Christmas morning. He was ecstatic about the day that had unfolded so far.

“Christmas I guess is supposed to come Monday,” Swinney said. “But it came a little early today. We just signed up an unbelievable group of young men to come to Clemson. It never gets old.”

Swinney and his staff’s recruiting ability is the gift that keeps on giving.

The Tigers signed 15 prospects on Wednesday as a whole. It’s a small class, but Swinney values quality over quantity. The 2018 class is highlighted by No. 1 prospect; QB Trevor Lawrence‍, No. 1 DE Xavier Thomas‍, and No. 1 OT Jackson Carman‍.

The reach for Clemson is further than it's ever been. This was the first Clemson class to sign the No. 1 ranked player from five different states. Names like Derion Kendrick‍ and KJ Henry‍ were at the top of other school’s wish lists, but Clemson is now their home.

Consistency has been vital for the Tigers, not only with on-field performance but also in recruiting. This is Clemson’s eighth top-15 class in a row under Swinney. He expressed great gratitude for his support staff, like Clemson’s social media team that ranks No. 1 in the country according to USA Today.

The Clemson brand has continued to grow over the years and the Early Signing Period provided another Clemson infomercial for recruits everywhere who may be thinking that Clemson could be a potential landing spot. 

To be clear, Swinney doesn’t like the new Early Signing Period.

He loves it.

“You can put me on record with that,” Swinney said. “I’ve been a long-time advocate for an early signing period for years. I presented at the head coaches meeting at the coaching convention three or four years ago. I just wish it was earlier.”

After the class he just put together before the first of the year, can you blame him?

Other coaches like Nick Saban have been against this idea of an Early Signing Period. Swinney has embraced it during this time where he is preparing for a third-straight meeting against Saban.

“It is an opportunity for these young people that know what they want to do to go ahead and formalize the process and not have to sit around and build all the drama any longer,” Swinney said. “It allows those guys who have been committed forever to go ahead and check that box and get their eyes focused on what’s next.”

The process also shows Swinney and his staff who really wants to go ahead and step on Clemson's campus. The Tigers are expecting seven or eight of the 15 signees to enroll in January to get to work.

One of those players is Lawrence, who Swinney said is further ahead of former quarterback Deshaun Watson physically at this point.

“He was one of the most low-maintenance recruits that I’ve been around,” Swinney said. “He’s just way ahead of Deshaun from a physical standpoint. We’ll see how he transitions and all that once he gets here and we start coaching him....He’s got everything you look for.”

It sounded like Lawrence will battle for a starting job from day one even after Kelly Bryant has led Clemson back to the playoff as a first-year starter. Swinney also had high praise for Carman, the OT he snagged from Ohio.

Swinney compared Carman to other notable recruits from Clemson’s past like Sammy Watkins and Deshaun Watson who were ready to go once they stepped on campus.

“The guy is 350 and can move,” Swinney said. “There’s probably no one here that can out-run him, and I’m willing to lay money on that. He can absolutely fly for a 350-pound man. He’s very physical and is the number one player in Ohio. A huge pick up for us.”

But the player Swinney seemed most excited about was three-star Braden Galloway‍, a tight end from Seneca, South Carolina. He said Galloway has tremendous upside.

“He’s that (Jordan) Leggett type body type. What I love about a guy like Braden Galloway is he is two-tenths of his potential.”

Galloway played basketball at Seneca High School and just recently started playing football. Swinney said Galloway will end up being 250 pounds almost overnight.

“He’s the guy you look up in a couple of years, and you say, ‘where did that guy come from?’ We have built this program on guys like him.”

With the Early Signing Period now in the rearview mirror, Clemson’s program continues to grow. If you thought Clemson was a flash in the pan, there are 15 reasons why you may want to rethink that assumption.

Wednesday solidified the fact that Clemson’s not going anywhere for now.

The Early Signing Period wasn’t a movie, but the first gift of Christmas did provide a happy ending.

Christmas came early.