TAMPA, Fla. — 247Sports' John Garcia was on-site at Plant High School on Thursday afternoon to cover the commitment decision announcement of four-star offensive lineman William Putnam, who chose Clemson over Florida State and Auburn.

Garcia interviewed both Will and Will's father, Neil, following the announcement.

In Will's words ...

"Again, it was a really tough process. Coming down to it, these past few days, it was really tough. I was kind of flipping almost ever hour. 'I'm gonna go to Clemson, I'm gonna go to Florida State.' It was flipping like that every hour. But it really came down to who I was as a person and what my goals are. When you think about Clemson, there's no speculation with Clemson, no guessing, you know know exactly what you're getting into with their system that's proven and it works every time. I really wanted to be part of something great like that, and I felt like I could be a major contributor even to something that's been that good so far.

"I think the clarity came when I realized there is no better place for someone like me to be. A wise man once told me, 'If you want to be a millionaire, you've got to hang out with millionaires.' If you want to be the best, you have to hang around the best.

"And Clemson has a great d-line. I really like the guys coming in on the d-line, too. That benefits me because I'll be working against the best. I think if I'm around tough competition, it'll only make me excel."

On Clemson's staff: "I think coach Swinney played a big part. And the thing about Clemson, a lot of what they did in recruiting me, was almost like not even doing much if that makes any sense. Their players really sell their program, being able to talk to them and see how they're normal, cool dudes. That starts with coach Swinney, who has set the culture of everything. And I don't think he's going anywhere. It's a very stable program right now. Coach Caldwell is a very confident and knowledgeable coach. Coach Elliott and coach Scott helped a lot, too, making sure I felt comfortable and at home."

On Clemson's stability: "It was important. Clemson right now, they're doing their thing and they're at the pinnacle of college football. It's hard to turn that down. I have an opportunity of a lifetime. It's hard to turn that down for something that could be great, but there's just no proof. I'd rather choose my future based on something I know is going to be successful.

"It came down to Clemson and Florida State. And it really came down to me thinking, 'You can't always sell out to coaches, you've got to sell out to the program, school, and everything else.' I love the FSU and Auburn coaches but Clemson sells the program."

Dad's point of view ...

"First of all, I'm happy with his decision-making process," Neil said. "So he sat down logically and looked at coaching, coaching stability, facilities, classes, academics, overall environment. And he was able to articulate he wanted Clemson, which is what we were happy with."

On if the official visit to Clemson was a game-changer: "In the end, I don't know. The staff at Clemson actually prefers to not have officials happen during game weekends. We didn't get to spend a to of detailed time with the coaches but it was good for William to get up to Clemson and see the environment and support of the fan base. It's just beautiful up there. It's something else."

On when a decision was reached: "Literally, it was within the last 24 hours or so when he sat down and pretty much said he was going to get off social media and not talk to coaches -- that was our advice -- to avoid any last-minute emotional factors to sway the decision. Will said, 'OK, I've taken into account everybody's input,' and he just laid it out. From a parents' standpoint we were happy with any of the three choices. Lots of good people on both staffs.

On Clemson's coaching staff: "I tell you what, top-notch. The results at Clemson speak for themselves. Stability of the program, success over the recent years, the way things are run. You talk with the players and the amount of former Clemson players that are on that staff, the message is on point no matter who you talk to -- the message is always the same. The players are happy. It's just a slam-dunk place as far as I'm concerned. And then we were really impressed with Clemson's strength and conditioning staff. Will's going to spend 85 percent of his time with them so that was important to me, too. I'm just super happy with the decision."