TFA football's Chancellor Barclay commits to Clemson

The four-star offensive lineman chose the Tigers over Florida, Georgia and Oklahoma.

By Sam Albuquerque
| 11:00 a.m. March 13, 2025

Sports
High Schools

The First Academy football’s Chancellor Barclay, a four-star offensive lineman and the 2024 All-Orange Observer Football Player of the Year, has announced his commitment to play college ball in Death Valley for the Clemson Tigers.

In a video posted to X, Barclay and his mother, Chris Anne Barclay, broke the news to Tigers coach Dabo Swinney.

“I got some bad news,” Chancellor Barclay said, trying to jokingly deceive Swinney. “You’re going to have to deal with me for the next three to four years because I’m committing to Clemson.”

The two-time national championship-winning Clemson coach was surprised at the news and elated to be landing the 6-foot-4, 290-pound interior lineman, saying he was not expecting Barclay to make his college decision this soon — especially because Barclay had announced in late January that he would be taking four official visits this summer at Clemson, Florida, Georgia and Oklahoma.

Beyond choosing the Tigers over the Gators, Bulldogs and Sooners, Barclay chose to head to Upstate South Carolina over seemingly endless options that included Alabama, UCF, Penn State, Miami and Florida State as well.

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Sam Albuquerque

A native of João Pessoa, Brazil, Sam Albuquerque moved in 1997 to Central Florida as a kid. After earning a communications degree in 2016 from the University of Central Florida, he started his career covering sports as a producer for a local radio station, ESPN 580 Orlando. He went on to earn a master’s degree in editorial journalism from Northwestern University, before moving to South Carolina to cover local sports for the USA Today Network’s Spartanburg Herald-Journal. When he’s not working, you can find him spending time with his lovely wife, Sarah, newborn son, Noah, and dog named Skulí.