By Steve Patterson
Gene Clifford the 6’2”, 190 lbs safety prospect from Cincinnati Ohio was rated the best in the state of the 2007 senior class. After he graduates from Colerain High School, he will be enrolling in the summer at Ohio State to compete for a starting cornerback position opposite Malcolm Jenkins. Colerain Assistant Coach John Cook likes Clifford’s speed and instincts in the defensive secondary. “Ability to react on the ball, speed, he has really good instincts as far as what's going on. He loves to study film of his opponents and that enables him to be able to do those things more efficiently. And he's got a great desire to win.”
In High School he played both offensive and defensive. “He played mostly Free Safety at Colerain. We used him some as a wide receiver.” Coach Cook explained to us although the Buckeyes are primarily thinking defensive at this time. Coach Cook feels the decision to play Clifford at corner could be a great one. “It could be a corner, field corner, a safety. He has the ability to be a wide receiver. He's got a lot of tools that he can bring to the shop. He's a good punt returner, kick return. I mean he's 6'2"-6'3" and if he can play corner, that's huge.”
Coach Cook thinks the world of Clifford as they utilized him as a freshman on the varsity team and full-time for the past three seasons. “We knew his sophomore year, the year we won the state championship. He was a starter and he just made plays. His speed and his ability, that knack to just make plays really opened our eyes. We had a need for a free safety position. He was in the 9th grade and we brought him up in 2003. He was a freshman and we brought him up for the playoffs, just so he can experience the atmosphere of the playoffs. But he was an exception, he was on special teams. We knew that he was very special, so we figured 'Get him on the field.'”
If has been reported that Clifford was working on his ACT score with a tutor and needed a better grade to get through admissions at Ohio State. According to Coach Cook, there is no problem at this time. “There isn't an issue, not that I know of.” He told to us.
Clifford picked Ohio State for distance reasons in addition to their tradition, academics, and football achievements. “It is far enough to get away but close enough for his parents to be able to see him play. His mom to be able to see him play, I should say.”