Khalil Barnes (born February 28, 2005) is an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

for the

Clemson Tigers The Clemson Tigers are the sport, athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level (NCAA Divis ...

Early life and high school

Barnes attended

North Oconee High School North Oconee High School (NOHS) is a public school located in Bogart, Georgia, United States. It opened in 2004 and is the second public high school in Oconee County. The school's mascot is Titus, and its colors are red, black, and gold. The sc ...

Bogart, Georgia Bogart is a city in Clarke County, Georgia, Clarke and Oconee County, Georgia, Oconee counties in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city is mostly in Oconee County, with a portion extending into Clarke County. As of the 2020 Un ...

. At the end of his

sophomore In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of Post-secondary school, post-secondary educatio ...

season, he suffered a torn ACL. As a

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Aircraft * Ekolot JK-05L Junior, a Polish ultralight aircraft * PZL-112 Junior, a Polish training aircraft * SZD-51 Junior, a Polish-made training and club glider Arts and entertainment Characters * Bowser Jr., ...

, Barnes notched 33 tackles with three being for a loss, and three interceptions.

Recruiting

Barnes received offers from schools such as Austin Peay, Army, Georgia State, East Carolina, Georgia Tech, Clemson, and Tennessee. He initially committed to play

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Wake Forest Demon Deacons The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Wake Forest University, located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Assoc ...

. However he later re-opened his recruiting, announcing his top 3 as Clemson, Notre Dame, and Oklahoma. Ultimately, Barnes committed to play

for the

College career

In week 2 of the 2023 season, Barnes recorded his first career interception in a victory over Florida Atlantic. In week 6, he notched a forced fumble in a win versus Wake Forest. In the 2023 regular season finale, Barnes returned a recovered fumble 42 yards for a touchdown, while also recording an interception, in a victory versus

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

. He finished his

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...

season in 2023 with 41 tackles with five being for a loss, a sack, six pass deflections, three interceptions, and three forced fumbles, earning freshman all-American honors. During the 2024 season, Barnes totaled 61 tackles with one being for a loss, three pass deflections, and four interceptions.

References

External links

Clemson Tigers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnes, Khalil 2005 births Living people Players of American football from Athens, Georgia People from Athens, Georgia American football safeties Clemson Tigers football players