Clemson Tigers Get Intriguing Pick to Preseason True Freshman All-America Team

The Clemson Tigers invested in a key position in recruiting and it may pay off by stabilizing a position of need this season.

Clemson kicker Nolan Hauser (81) is congratulated after kicking a field goal during the first quarter of the Spring football game in Clemson, S.C. Saturday, April 6, 2024. / Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Clemson Tigers have one of the most highly-regarded position players in the country in linebacker Sammy Brown, who has been a fixture on just about every preseason true freshman All-America team.

The latest from 247Sports was no different. Brown made that team. But, this time, he wasn’t alone.

Another member of the Tigers’ Class of 2024 made the site’s list, and it’s a player Clemson hopes can shore up a troublesome position from a year ago — kicker Nolan Hauser.

The site noted that the kicking game was a sore spot for the Tigers a year ago. Things got so bad that coach Dabo Swinney actually re-recruited a former kicker, Jonathan Weitz, who still had eligibility but was set to start a full-time job.

Weitz ended up going 14-for-20 on field goals and made all 29 extra-point attempts. Robert Gunn III, the kicker who took a back seat to him, was just 1-for-4 and 14-for-15 on extra points.

Gunn is back this season and competing with Hauser in fall camp. Swinney told reporters recently that Hauser is winning the battle to be the kicker in the season opener when the No. 14 Tigers face the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs on Aug. 31 in Atlanta.

The Cornelius, N.C., native finished his career at William Amos Hough High School with 66 field goals, which broke the national high school record of 56 set by Cole Hedlund of Argyle, Texas, who went to kick at Arkansas and North Texas before a brief NFL career.

He also finished third in national high school history with 403 kicking points. With those credentials, he was rated by three different recruiting services, including 247Sports, as the nation’s No. 1 kicker.

As a prep player he made 81.5% of his field goals and 205-of-211 of his extra points.

He earned All-America honors three times and was named All-State four times by the Charlotte Observer.

As for Brown, it was another preseason honor for a player that could help change the face of the Clemson defense. The Commerce, Ga., product is in a position to make a contribution for the Tigers this season.

He was one of the most decorated recruits in the Class of 2024. He was ranked a consensus Top 30 player nationally and MaxPreps ranked him as the country’s top all-around athlete, as he also ran track and wrestled. The list of previous MaxPreps winners includes Patrick Mahomes, Kyler Murray and Derrick Henry. He also won the High School Butkus Award, presented each year to the top high school linebacker in the nation.