Robert Nkemdiche's Clemson Commitment Is Fishy

When top defensive end recruit Robert Nkemdiche agreed to play for Clemson next season, it caught a lot of people off guard. He could have gone anywhere he wanted, so to make a decision this early in the process seemed hasty. 

According to Danny Sheridan of USA Today, one of the reasons that Clemson was able to reel in Nkemdiche was because of its willingness to give two of his high school teammates scholarships of their own:

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Robert Nkemdiche told UA coaches he was going there & asked 4 a 3 for 1 deal (sign 2 of his teammates). Clemson agreed & UA wouldn't do that

— Danny Sheridan (@DannySheridan1) June 24, 2012"

A report from David Purdam of The Crystal Ball Run gives the timeline for Nkemdiche's decision, and how it coincided with the announcement of running back Wayne Gallam and defensive back David Kamara:

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Gallman committed to Clemson in mid-April, while Kamara waited until June 14 to tell Swinney he’d join the Tigers. Nkemdiche then surprised most recruiting pundits by pledging his allegiance to Clemson shortly after Kamara did. So if Alabama did turn down a commitment from Nkemdiche in return for signing Kamara and Gallam, it likely happened before April.

"

Adding fuel to the wildfire, Nkemdiche's high school coach Mickey Conn told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he didn't know the decision was coming when he drove him to Clemson for camp last week:

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Oh no, I had no idea. I drove him up there because he wanted to go. I thought he was going to commit in February and I didn’t know where. I had no idea he was going to do it last week.

"

Purdam's report does point out that the validity of the Sheridan report is debatable. Still, there seems to be something fishy going on with Nkemdiche and his commitment to Clemson. 

If that is the case, college football could have a major recruiting problem on its hands, where players negotiate deals for their friends in addition to taking care of themselves.

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