OL Connor Lew talks top four ahead of summer officials
The finalists have emerged for 2023 offensive lineman Connor Lew.
The product of Kennesaw Mountain High School in Georgia has a top four of Georgia, Auburn, Clemson, and Miami. Each of those schools will receive an official visit this summer - Clemson on June 3, Miami on June 10, Auburn on June 17, and Georgia on June 24.
Lew hopes to commit before his senior season begins this fall. Rivals caught up with him to get the latest on his recruitment ahead of a pivotal summer.
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In His Own Words
On Georgia: "I’d say for Georgia, the biggest thing they’ve got is one, I’ve started building a really good relationship with (offensive line coach Stacy Searels) and Coach (Kirby) Smart along with the fact that in the draft, it’s hard to go unnoticed of how many people they’ve sent. The development aspect of Georgia is something that stands out to me."
On his relationship with Searels: "I had the advantage because I talked to him at North Carolina while he was there a little bit. Once he made the transition over to Georgia, we kind of picked up where we left off. We get along great. It’s been really easy to talk to him. We talk every week."
On Clemson: "Every time I've been to Clemson, the thing that stood out to me is the family aspect. I have a cousin that actually goes to Clemson, so I know some people that go there, some friends that graduated and have gone to Clemson. So I would say just the family vibe there. I feel at home there."
On the family vibe in the Clemson program: "You can see, while we were eating dinner before the game, there were players hanging out, just chilling and getting along. It was just something special."
On Auburn: "My relationship with (offensive line coach Will Friend) has been really good. Auburn actually has a program there, it's their pro flight program, that I'm interested in pursuing as a possible major."
On Will Friend: "When we sat down to watch film, he was kind of teaching me some of the plays from that practice. I was just really, I was able to pick up on everything he was showing me pretty easily."
On Miami and the new energy there: "I think there's a lot of hype around the program, and I think there should be as well, especially from an offensive line perspective. You have an offensive line coach as a head coach, and then you have a really good O-line coach in Coach (Alex) Mirabal. As an O-lineman, you've got to really think about that. Trajectory-wise, I think they're on to big places."
On how unique Miami is with having a former offensive lineman in Mario Cristobal as the head coach: "That's even more experience when it comes to coaching. You have more eyes on you that know what they're talking about when it comes to the O-line position. I think, especially Coach Cristobal coming from very good programs, he knows his stuff. The more people the better."
On possibly using a fifth official and which schools are pushing for one: "I wouldn't count it out, but I don't plan on using it unless I have to. I would say Florida State, Kentucky, Boston College, Virginia."
On his commitment timeline: "I'd like to commit before my senior season, that way I can focus on football. But if it takes longer, it takes longer. I want to be deliberate in this process and make sure I don't have any regrets."
Rivals Reaction
There are no clear favorites at this point for Lew. Two programs to keep an eye on are Georgia and Miami. There are the obvious strong relationships at Miami with what Cristobal has done in the past. But Georgia's development stands out to Lew, who has a good relationship with Searels and who actually received his offer from Smart himself earlier this year. Each of these four schools has the chance to pull to the front for Lew with a strong official visit this summer.