James Franklin and the Penn State football program hosted a number of recruits for their home opener against Bowling Green.
One of the players that traveled to Beaver Stadium was talented 2026 3-star cornerback Demari Clemons.
Clemons is a 5’10” corner from Washington High School in Massillon, Ohio. Along with Penn State, Clemons holds other Power Four offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Pitt, West Virginia, Syracuse, Maryland and Louisville.
Nittany Sports Now talked with Clemons Wednesday night and he couldn’t say enough good things about the experience and his overall feelings about the Penn State football program.
“My relationship with Penn State is definitely getting stronger and better,” Clemons said. “I talk mostly with Coach Terry (Smith), AZ and Khalid and I feel as though my relationship with them is like father and son.”
“Coach Smith treats me like a son but at the same time, he keeps it real. The thing I like most about Coach Terry is that he doesn’t sugarcoat anything. Everything about him is real and honest.”
Some of the recruits in attendance were making their first trip to Happy Valley but that’s not the case with Clemons. Over the last two years, Saturday was the fifth time that Clemons has been on campus at Penn State.
“As soon as you walk in, you just feel the energy, the fans there are ready,” he said. “One thing I really like about Penn State is that everyone comes together. The atmosphere there is different.”
“It was one of those games that no matter how close the game was, you never worry about the outcome,” he said. “I knew Penn State had it no matter how close it got. I was a game where Penn State didn’t play their best but made enough plays to win. The other team came to play but at the end of the day, I knew Penn State was going to be Penn State.”
Aside from the outcome of the game, something else stood out to Clemons. When you’re a player that’s getting recruited by many programs, genuine interest is something that’s important and that was something that he felt from the Penn State football staff.
“As soon as I got to the stadium, I was taken to the area where we eat at,” he said. Immediately, I was met at the door by Coach AZ. He slapped me up and seemed really excited to see me. When then went to eat and Coach Khalid came over and showed me love. We then went on the field, watched Penn State warm up, it was great.”
“It really makes me feel amazing,” he said. “When it comes time to commit, as a player you have to take everything into consideration. If you’re getting recruited by and have an offer from a school but they don’t really show that they want you, then they don’t want you. If a school really wants you, you’ll know it. One thing I like about Penn State, they really show me love.”
Courtesy Demari Clemons
In terms of future visits, Clemons tells NSN that he’s looking to make visits to Michigan State, Michigan, Ohio State, probably Ole Miss and West Virginia.
“Schools like that are showing me interest and a lot of love,” he said. “I’m not going to lie; I’m getting interest from a lot of schools. It’s a big year for me. In the end though, it’s going to come down to relationships. Whoever I have the tightest relationship with and feel I have the most trust with, that’s where I’m going to go.”
