Calvin Clements said staying close to home has benefits

There are four high school recruits who enrolled early and reported last week to the Kansas football program. Calvin Clements had the shortest drive to campus of the group.

Clements, an offensive lineman from Free State, did not have to go far from home when he reported to start his KU career.

While several of his friends and classmates started school in early January, Clements prepared to make the transition from high school to college.

“It was crazy and pretty fun not going to school,” Clements said. “So, I didn’t get to see those friends as much, and having some of my last home-cooked meals for a while, and just trying to spend as much time with my friends and family as I can.”

Although Clements will live in the city he played his high school football, things will be different. His college career started with the team’s first workout on Tuesday.

“Definitely an excitement,” he said. “It's definitely become real through the recruiting process. It can just seem like a dream, seem like an imagination, but it's crept up pretty fast, and making things official, filling out forms, signing forms, and stuff like that. It makes it feel really official, and getting up to the facility, and just knowing that's going to be home for the next four years. It's crazy.”

Clements was committed to Baylor for several months and reversed course as signing day drew closer. He stayed in contact with offensive line coach Scott Fuchs during that time. He also played on the offensive line with Hank Fuchs in high school.

The connection was always there, and it made things easier when he decided to change his commitment.

“There are a lot of great benefits to staying close to home,” Clements said. “I have a really tight friend group, some really good friends that I will miss, but definitely it's going to be helpful that I'll still be in town, and still be around them. Even just being able to come home, and be around my family, and stop by, and say, ‘Hi’, is definitely going to be valuable to me.”

Clements said he stayed in shape over the break working out at Ubuntu Performance with Kelly Barah.

“KU sent some workouts, so I ran quite a bit, and making sure I got to the gym, eating healthy, and getting good sleep,” he said.

In the early signing period Kansas landed two of the top local prospects in Clements and Jaden Hamm. Clements said local recruits should take notice what the Jayhawks are building.

“This is a program on the rise,” Clements said. “This is the place to be. These coaches are special, and we're going to continue to change this program around and have a lot of fun.”