Jahiem Lawson makes the choice to stay home

Lawson committed to Clemson Friday evening.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Sat Jan 29 08:00:06 GMT-04:00 2022

Jahiem Lawson made the choice to stay home.

Lawson, the 3-star edge rusher out of Central (SC) Daniel, announced his commitment to Clemson on Friday. Lawson (6-3, 230) gives the Tigers' their only defensive end prospect for the 2022 cycle. Lawson was only recently offered by the Tigers and took an official visit to campus a few weeks ago.

It felt like home.

“I always wanted to go to Clemson, but when I knew for sure is when I took my official visit,” Lawson told TigerNet. “They really welcomed me in and it really felt like a family. I felt really welcome and I made the choice to stay home.”

Lawson said he was happy when the offer came from head coach Dabo Swinney.

“The offer came out of the blue. Coach Dabo called me up, and he said, 'I haven't forgotten about you. You are still on my mind and I am still recruiting you. Don't forget.' That is what he said and I kept that in mind,” Lawson said.

During his senior season for the state champion Lions, Lawson recorded 75 tackles, 25 for loss, and 11 sacks. Getting after the quarterback is what he does best.

“I have a twitch. I can get off the ball really well. I can get after the quarterback really well in the pass rush,” he said. “I can get after the quarterback and try to sack that guy. Right now I am 215 and I want to be 245 in my freshman year.”

His other offers included Georgia Tech, Syracuse, Western Kentucky, Central Michigan, East Carolina, and Coastal Carolina among others. However, he has always kept an eye on the defensive ends at Clemson.

“Those are big guys. I was watching them when I was younger,” Lawson said. “XT (Xavier Thomas) used to be my favorite player. I was always watching his highlights and watching him play, so he was kind of like a role model. It will be good to look up to him when I get there.”

He said the decision to commit was an easy one.

“Why not? I am ready. I am ready to be a Tiger,” he said. “I am ready to be All In. It is amazing but good at the same time. I am ready to work, I am here. I am All In. Let's go Tigers.”

Lawson is the younger brother of former Tigers defensive standout Shaq Lawson.

“He has been on my butt. He has been really supportive of me,” Lawson said. “He was very excited when I got the offer. He told me to keep my options open, but I told him I was going to commit last week. He is very excited. He told me that it is different than high school and I have to be ready to work.”

Lawson is the 17th member of the 2022 recruiting class and joins fellow three-stars wide receiver Cole Turner, cornerback Myles Oliver, safety Kylon Griffin, and linebacker Kobe McCloud as seniors to commit to Clemson this month. All of them will officially sign with Clemson next Wednesday on Feb. 2 National Signing Day.