Jadeveon Clowney made the call on his birthday.
The 6-foot-6, 240-pound defensive end ranked as the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2011 by ESPNU announced his college choice Monday morning on ESPN.
“I’m heading to the University of South Carolina,” Clowney, out of Southe Point High in Rock Hill, S.C., said as he put a Gamecocks hat on.
Clowney chose South Carolina over Clemson and Alabama.
“I chose it because I got a lot friends up there,” Clowney said. “It’s close to home. My mom can come see me all the time. I got a couple friends going there this year, Gerald Dixon. I want to play with them boys.”
His high school teammates Stephon Gilmore and DeVonte Holloman are also headed to South Carolina.
Clowney said his mother “didn’t really want me to go far so that’s why I didn’t really go to Alabama.”
“When I went to Alabama, I was very close to choosing Alabama,” he added.” I had fun down there. I really didn’t want to come back home. But my momma didn’t like it because it was too far.”
Clowney tallied 29.5 sacks in his career and added three more in the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas on Dec. 18 and 1.5 in the UnderAmour All-America Game on Jan. 5
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