Four-star OL target ready to get out on the road to visit top schools

Petty poses in head coach Dabo Swinney's office this past summer.

by Nikki Hood - Staff Writer - Wed Oct 04 16:30:13 GMT-04:00 2023

One of the top 2025 offensive line targets for the Tigers is hopeful he can get out on the road soon to visit some of his top schools.

Josh Petty (6-5 245) is a 4-star out of Roswell (GA) Fellowship Christian School who already has offers starting to pile up, including Clemson. The Tigers are joined by Georgia, Georgia Tech, Notre Dame, Auburn, LSU, Tennessee, Oregon, Penn State, Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan, Stanford, Oklahoma, Mississippi State, Duke, Virginia Tech, Miami, and North Carolina as some of his major offers, and more are likely to come in as Petty moves forward with his recruitment.

“I’m still at the very early stages of my recruitment,” Petty said. “I’m just very blessed to be able to earn some offers, and I still haven’t been on enough visits and seen enough schools to tell exactly where I am in my recruitment.”

This season Petty has yet to get to a school for a game. Prior to the season and back into the summer, his stops included Clemson, South Carolina, Oregon, Georgia, Auburn, Stanford, Georgia Tech, and North Carolina. Petty has not cut his list, so Clemson offensive line coach Thomas Austin is in constant contact.

“Me and Coach Austin talk often and text. I believe he’s coming down to a game next week,” Petty said. “He says I’m a long, lanky, athletic guy who is really strong and has got good footwork and is a big athlete. Clemson is a great school, and I really like Coach Austin. I met with Coach (Dabo) Swinney. A lot of his ideals for a team align with mine, and I think that’s a great program over there. I would say Clemson is a serious consideration in my recruitment.”

Petty said some others he hears from with regularity include Georgia, Michigan, Tennessee, Florida, Oklahoma, Stanford, Southern Cal and Duke. His offer list consists of some football powers and some high academic programs. As he considers the factors most important to him when looking over the schools, Petty said he wants a good football situation that’s blended with excellent academics.

“The developmental aspect of it is a big piece for me just because I want to go in there and come out a different person,” Petty said. “That’s a major time in my life when I need to think about growing as a man and a football player and taking a leap from this level to the next level. The coach that’s there, if he’s a great coach and really good at what he does, is going to help develop me. The facilities matter quite a bit; make sure they have stuff for recoveries, stuff for lifting weights, and just making sure I can stay healthy. And academics as well. That’s a big part for me. I want to get a good degree.”

Petty has been focused on his own team, but he said he’d like to get to some games this season and mentioned Clemson, Georgia, Tennessee, Ole Miss, LSU, Ohio State, Michigan, and some teams out west as places he’d like to visit.