Dabo Swinney and the Clemson Tigers have received major news from a five-star recruit.
Right now, Dabo Swinney and the Clemson Tigers are mainly focused on bouncing back in 2026 after a tough showing this past season.
But that does not mean Swinney isn't looking toward the future at all.
In fact, Clemson is heavily pursuing five-star defensive end Ashton Ghioto, who has visited the Tigers on more than one occasion and will be doing so again in a couple of months.
The catch? Ghioto is a class of 2028 prospect, and Swinney's general policy is that he won't recruit players that far down the road.
So what makes Ghioto different? Well, the Jacksonville, Fl. product is thinking about reclassifying to 2027, and he has already made Clemson aware of that.
“The possibility of reclassing came up, and that they would be very interested in that possibility,” Ghioto told The Clemson Insider. “They don’t usually recruit that far out, so they are treating me as a ’27 as of now, just because of the possibility that I could reclass up. And they are very heavily pursuing that opportunity, for sure.”
Clemson Tigers coach Dabo Swinney. Credit: Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK.Ghioto is the second-ranked defensive lineman and the 12th-ranked player nationally in his class, via 247 Sports' composite rankings. He is also the fifth-ranked prospect in the state of Florida.
The 6-foot-5 pass rusher will be making the trip to Clemson for the Elite Retreat on March 7, and he definitely seems excited about the opportunity.
“This will finally be a good opportunity for me to get to know the program as it is,” Ghioto said. “I feel like at the moment, I have only gotten a suppressed version of it, because I am so far out in my recruitment process, and them being a school that doesn’t really recruit guys this early on, which I totally respect."
Swinney has been criticized for his rather archaic recruiting methods, but it's possible that he is open to altering his strategy based on the fact that the Tigers seem to be fading.
We are already witnessing Swinney deviate from his norms in the transfer portal this winter, as he has already landed double the amount of players he did between 2022 and 2025 combined.
Clemson went just 7-6 this past season in spite of entering the campaign with national championship aspirations. It marked the school's worst finish since going 6-7 in 2010, which was Swinney's second year with the program.