Clemson first to offer Florida TE

Tallahassee (Fla.) Lincoln High School athlete Craig Gelhardt has been receiving a lot of interest from all over the South, but finally has his first official offer in hand.

The 6-4, 230-pound tight end runs a 4.7-second 40-yard dash, and lists eight schools as finalists for his signature.

The Gelhardt household was busy during the early evaluation period as Craig received calls from from Iowa State, Northwestern, East Carolina, Florida, Clemson, North Carolina, South Florida, UConn, and Louisville.

Lincoln High was also the recipient of a lot of attention, with coaches from 55 colleges, including Florida, Auburn, Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Tennessee, LSU, NC State, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, Miami, and Central Florida all visiting the campus.

"The top schools I am looking at are Auburn, Clemson, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Florida, Tennessee, the University of Miami, and UCF," Craig commented. Although several schools have hinted that scholarship offers will be forthcoming soon, only one has come forward so far.

"I received an offer from Clemson," Gelhardt explained. "That is the only official offer I have gotten."

In addition to his duties at the tight end slot, Craig also excels as a long snapper. He graded out at 81 percent as a junior, and recorded 24 knockdowns and 18 pancake blocks.

Gelhardt has not scheduled any unofficial visits as of yet. He is a solid student having already scored a 1,010 on the SAT.