Khalil Barnes
.jpg) Barnes with the Clemson Tigers in 2025 | |
| No. 7 – Georgia Bulldogs | |
|---|---|
| Position | Safety |
| Class | Senior |
| Personal information | |
| Born | February 28, 2005 |
| Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Listed weight | 200 lb (91 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | North Oconee (Bogart, Georgia) |
| College | |
| Stats at ESPN | |
Khalil Barnes (born February 28, 2005) is an American college football safety for the Georgia Bulldogs. He previously played for the Clemson Tigers.
Early life
[edit]Barnes attended North Oconee High School in Bogart, Georgia. At the end of his sophomore season, he suffered a torn ACL.[1] As a junior, Barnes notched 33 tackles with three being for a loss, and three interceptions.[2]
Recruiting
[edit]Barnes received offers from schools such as Austin Peay, Army, Georgia State, East Carolina, Georgia Tech, Clemson, and Tennessee.[3] He initially committed to play college football for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.[2] However he later re-opened his recruiting, announcing his top 3 as Clemson, Notre Dame, and Oklahoma.[4] Ultimately, Barnes committed to play college football for the Clemson Tigers.[5]
College career
[edit]In week 2 of the 2023 season, Barnes recorded his first career interception in a victory over Florida Atlantic.[6] In week 6, he notched a forced fumble in a win versus Wake Forest.[7] 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.[8] He finished his freshman 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.[9] During the 2024 season, Barnes totaled 61 tackles with one being for a loss, three pass deflections, and four interceptions.[10]
On January 4, 2026, Barnes announced his decision to transfer to the University of Georgia to play for the Georgia Bulldogs.[11]
College statistics
[edit]| Year | Team | Class | GP | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solo | Ast | Tot | Loss | Sk | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | PD | FF | FR | ||||
| 2023 | Clemson | FR | 13 | 33 | 5 | 38 | 5.0 | 1.0 | 3 | 4 | 1.3 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 1 |
| 2024 | Clemson | SO | 14 | 36 | 25 | 61 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 2025 | Clemson | JR | 10 | 24 | 16 | 40 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2026 | Georgia | SR | |||||||||||||
| Career | 37 | 93 | 46 | 139 | 6.5 | 1.0 | 7 | 4 | 0.6 | 0 | 11 | 3 | 1 | ||
References
[edit]- ↑ Baxley, McClain (October 19, 2022). "'He is a light': How patience paid off for North Oconee football star Khalil Barnes". Online Athens. Retrieved May 24, 2025.
- 1 2 Baxley, McClain (June 28, 2022). "Why North Oconee's Khalil Barnes committed to Wake Forest over Purdue, others". Online Athens. Retrieved May 24, 2025.
- ↑ Baxley, McClain (February 17, 2022). "Trips to SEC and ACC football programs are on North Oconee star Khalil Barnes' calendar". Online Athens. Retrieved May 24, 2025.
- ↑ Baxley, McClain (November 15, 2022). "North Oconee football's Khalil Barnes announces top 3, sets college commitment date". Online Athens. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
- ↑ Shanesy, Todd (December 16, 2022). "Clemson football beats Notre Dame on commitment from 3-star safety Khalil Barnes". Greenville Online. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
- ↑ Long, Christina (September 16, 2023). "3 things to know about Clemson football freshman safety Khalil Barnes". Greenville Online. Retrieved May 24, 2025.
- ↑ Blau, Jon. "Clemson frosh Khalil Barnes has mindset and 'heart-set' to play early". Post and Courier. Retrieved May 24, 2025.
- ↑ Long, Christina (November 25, 2023). "See Clemson football freshman Khalil Barnes scoop and score, then pick off Spencer Rattler". Greenville Online. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
- ↑ Priester, Jason (May 8, 2024). "Khalil Barnes Says Clemson Secondary Can Be 'Best in Nation'". The Clemson Insider. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
- ↑ "Khalil Barnes 2024 Game Logs". Sports Reference. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
- ↑ Weiszer, Marc (January 4, 2026). "Ex-North Oconee standout Khalil Barnes to transfer to Georgia football". Online Athens. Retrieved January 4, 2026.