It was by all accounts a legacy signing when Bryan County High School standout Austin Clemons put pen to paper and signed a national letter of intent last Friday to play football at Middle Tennessee State University.

In signing before a packed media center Clemons became the first Redskins football player to be recruited by an FBS school following a record-breaking season by him and the Bryan County football program.

Clemons ran for a school record 1,803 yards and scored 21 touchdowns in playing a key role for a Bryan County team which finished the season with a 12-2 record and won its first ever region championship before losing to eventual state champion Prince Avenue Christian in the Final Four of the Class A-DI  playoffs.

When Clemons’ mother, Tequila, signed off giving her consent for him to become a Blue Raider it was an emotional moment for everyone involved as it marked the next step in a life-changing event. Also present were his father Elijah, sister Lydreyah and his grandmother, Annie Clemons, who is a staff employee at BCHS.

“It’s an amazing feeling, especially when you’ve been through such a dramatic turnaround that we’ve had here,” Clemons said. “We’ve gained a lot of respect not only from other schools but from our community.

“It’s never been like it was here this year,” Clemons said. “There were a lot of firsts for us and Bryan County football but it won’t be the last. I feel like we’ve built a program. Not just a one-year thing but a program.

“All the younger guys have to do is just follow the program. Follow the blueprint that has been laid down.”

There was no question, gaging by the makeup of those in attendance which included family, teammates, students, teachers, friends and fans, the impact of the homegrown product getting rewarded for the work and effort he has put in.

It was not lost on Clemons.

“This is rare for a kid to come through Bryan County and to be here his whole life and end up going somewhere due to his athletic or academic ability,” Clemons said. “There haven’t been many people who go to college or get scholarships from this school.

“A lot of people, they get to middle school and they leave and go to other schools and that’s where they get their opportunity. I think it just shows kids it’s possible to achieve a dream by going to Bryan County High School.”  

Clemons’ story is one which illustrates how far hard work, perseverance and trusting your coaches can take a player if he’s willing to pay the price.

The one man on the Redskins coaching staff who is best quantified to give a measure of how far Clemons progressed from the time he started playing to where he is today is offensive coordinator Chad Roberts.

Roberts was the head coach at the middle school when Clemons came up as a sixth-grader and coached Clemons and his fellow seniors for three years before moving up with them when Freeman was hired four years ago.

“I’ve watched all of these players develop,” Roberts said. “My first year at Bryan County (after 10 years at Tattnall County) they were in the sixth grade. I coached football and track…it’s really like watching your own kids grow up. Like watching your sons develop.”

And, it is Clemons’ development into an FBS level player that has made a lasting impression on Roberts.

“He was a very small, wiry little guy,” Roberts said of the 6-foot-0, 210-pound Clemons who was a dominant physical presence on the field. “He was very smart, like a coach on the field in the seventh grade which is hard to believe. Not that we had a complicated system but him being on the field, especially defensively, was like I was on the field and that helped tremendously.

“He wasn’t the best player out there—I don’t know who our best player was—but he was a good player,” Roberts said. “He has developed his body in high school and became the player and man we have now.

“I’ve got pictures saved from when they were in middle school. It’s just unbelievable the difference from now and then. It’s just amazing.”

First year Middle Coach Derek Mason signed 25 players, eight from Georgia, in the early signing period.  Clemons was one of two running backs in the class. Mason anticipates signing up to another 10 players on the Feb. 7 signing day.

Mason, a former head coach at Vanderbilt, was hired on Dec. 6, 2023, to replace long-time coach Rick Stockstill who retired after 19 seasons. The Blue Raiders finished 4-8 last year but were consistent winners under Stockstill who took them to 10 bowl games. MTSU is a member of Conference-USA.