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Brian Shoemaker
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Gamecock Nation Today
Friday, April 26, 2019
Good morning from Gamecock Central
Here is the schedule for this weekend:
Friday, April 26
• 7:30 am - Men's Golf: SEC Championship, Round 3
• 9 am - Track & Field: 125th Penn Relays, video
• 6 pm - Softball: Georgia, SECN
• 7:30 pm - Baseball: at Missouri, SECN+, TuneIn
Saturday, April 27
• 7 am - Track & Field: 125th Penn Relays, video
• 7:30 am - Men's Golf: SEC Championship, Quarterfinals
• 12 pm - Softball: Georgia, ESPN2
• 12:30 pm - Men's Golf: SEC Championship, Semifinals, SECN+*
• 7:30 pm - Baseball: at Missouri, SECN+, TuneIn
* Coverage begins at 4:30 pm
Sunday, April 28
• 7:30 am - Men's Golf: SEC Championship, Finals, SECN
• 3 pm - Softball: Georgia, ESPN2
• 3 pm - Baseball: at Missouri, SECN+, TuneIn
1. Gamecocks hosting first official visitors of the spring
South Carolina will host its first batch of 2020 prospects on official visits this weekend as two of the Gamecocks' top targets will spend 48 hours on campus getting a taste of college life and the staff's best recruiting pitches. But that's not all, several unofficial visitors are also scheduled to hit campus in what will be a key recruiting weekend.
Here's a look at the two official visitors the Gamecocks are set to host and two key unofficial visitors who will be on campus:
Four-star RB Tank Bigsby (official)
Bigsby is ranked a four-star "athlete" by Rivals.com, but is a running back on the Gamecocks' board and easily one of their top overall targets. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Hoganville (Ga.) Callaway standout has been high on the Gamecocks for some time and has been a mainstay on campus over the last five months.
LSU recently hosted Bigsby on an official visit and may be Carolina's biggest competition, though the Gamecocks are thought to be the favorite. Schools like Auburn, Alabama and Georgia are also involved with Bigsby, who could announce a decision soon.
Three-star OL Javion Cohen (official)
The offensive line MVP winner at the Rivals Atlanta camp, Cohen made waves last week when he decommitted from the Gamecocks just weeks after initially committing to the program.
The 6-foot-4, 275-pound offensive tackle from Phenix City (Ala.) Central remains high on South Carolina, but felt that he made a decision too quickly. This weekend will give offensive line coach Eric Wolford and Co. the chance to remind Cohen of all the reasons he chose the program in the first place. But a recent offer from Auburn looms large as Cohen has always been high on the Tigers.
Four-star DE Myles Murphy (unofficial)
South Carolina landed Murphy's four-star receiver teammate Mike Wyman earlier this month and hopes to make it a two from Greensboro's Dudley High as Murphy is a huge priority for them.
Murphy stopped just short of naming South Carolina his leader when we talked to him earlier this month, but make no mistake the Gamecocks are in great shape here. Murphy plans a return to campus on June 1 for an official visit and then will announce a decision later than month. He's also highly considering Alabama, North Carolina and LSU.
Three-star WR Ze'Vian Capers (unofficial)
A 6-foot-4, 215-pounder receiver who can go up and get the football, Capers is currently committed to Arkansas but has always had his eye on South Carolina and has family in the Palmetto State.
The Alpharetta (Ga.) Denmark playmaker will approach his visit to Columbia with an open mind as he's been receptive to pitches from both South Carolina and Tennessee despite his pledge to Arkansas. Currently a three-star, Capers is set to move up in the Rivals rankings. This was originally scheduled to be an official visit, but Capers tells us it's now been changed to an unofficial.
What exactly goes into an official visit weekend?
Will Muschamp addressed what's on deck for this weekend's visitors: "It's all about relationships. It's another opportunity, and this weekend is a little different for us, we do a lot more on campus than we do around our football facility to be able to see our beautiful campus.
"Sometimes when they come on a gameday atmosphere, they don't necessarily get to see that. We've got a great campus and it's a really good weekend for us to just continue to build relationships in the recruiting process."
South Carolina will also have multiple unofficial visitors on campus this weekend and we'll have complete coverage on GamecockCentral.com's premium message board, The Insiders Forum.
– Wes Mitchell
2. Baseball: USC travels to Missouri
Who: South Carolina (24-17, 5-13 SEC) vs. Missouri (27-15-1, 7-10-1 SEC)
Where: Taylor Stadium (Columbia, Mo.)
• Friday, 7:30 p.m., SECN+, TuneIn
• Saturday, 7:30 p.m., SECN+, TuneIn
• Sunday, 3 p.m., SECN+, TuneIn
Probable starting pitchers:
USC: RHP Reid Morgan (3-3, 3.55), RHP Cam Tringali (2-1, 3.33), TBA
Texas A&M: LHP Jacob Cantleberry (3-3, 4.08), LHP TJ Sikkema (4-3, 1.46), TBA
Missouri, while below .500 in conference play, has one of the better pitching staffs in the SEC, ranking fourth in staff ERA at 2.99 with 430 strikeouts.
Offensively the Tigers are 12th in hitting, slashing .259/.378/.397.
They have some decent SEC wins, taking series over LSU and Ole Miss, but are coming off getting swept by Georgia on the road and a midweek win over Missouri State.
Up next: With final exams this week, the Gamecocks don’t have a midweek game and will have all week off before hosting No. 6 Vanderbilt for a three-game series starting Friday.
Baseball Links: News | SEC Standings | Schedule | Statistics | Polls
– Collyn Taylor
3. This, that, and the other
Men's Basketball: Hasse transferring from Gamecocks - Rising junior forward Felipe Hasse will transfer from the men's basketball team, a school spokesperson confirmed Thursday afternoon. (link)
Baseball: Sightler, Campbell hoping Tuesday was 'good turning point' - Even when Josiah Sightler wasn’t in the lineup, you could find him swinging a bat while watching his team play every. Tuesday night, after a season full of struggles, he got a chance to use that bat in a game and may have done enough to keep using it this weekend. (link)
Football: Griffin reflects on USC career - Kelsey Griffin lettered for South Carolina from 2013 until 2016, playing in a total of 40 games. The Georgia native recently took time to speak with Gamecock Central's Chris Clark, and in this multi-part interview, went into detail on his career. (subscription)
Football Recruiting: Georgia's DJ Lundy talks Gamecocks - Georgia's DJ Lundy is one of the state's more intriguing talents. South Carolina is among the programs to have extended a verbal offer, and recently hosted him for a visit. (subscription)
Football: Video: Will Muschamp speaks at Midlands 'Spurs Up Tour' stop - Will Muschamp spoke with media prior to Wednesday's "Spurs Up Tour" stop in the Midlands. USC's head coach hit on several topics during his conversation with media members. (link)
NFL Draft: Where national outlets have Samuel, Daley getting drafted - Let the anticipation and hand-wringing commence. The NFL Draft starts Thursday night and with it comes a lot of patient waiting, stress for players watching pick after pick and the potential for a few Gamecock players' lives to change forever. (link)
Softball: Taking ene for the team is a common occurrence for trio - Three Gamecock softball players talk about why they value being hit by pitches. (link)
Football: Valentine returning to form on track, will rejoin football in June - For the time being, the South Carolina football team and the track and field program are sharing Lavonte Valentine and his 4.3 speed. (link)
Men's Tennis: Jubb and Rodrigues named first-team All-SEC - South Carolina men's tennis team had three student-athletes earn all-conference honors. (link)
Softball: Carolina set to host Georgia - The No. 14 softball team is set to host No. 15 Georgia for senior weekend this Friday through Sunday. (link)
Men's Golf: USC in eighth at SEC Championship - South Carolina is in eighth place at the 2019 SEC Championship after 36 holes of stroke play. (link)
– Jackson Fields
4. This Date in Gamecock History
April 26, 1985 – The Gamecocks routed Clemson, 14-2, thanks to jumping on Tiger pitcher Jerome Santivasci early and often.
5. Birthdays and Celebrations!
Robby Vollmer – Joining the Gamecocks out of Plant High School in Tampa, Vollmer moved into a starting role in center field late in his freshman season of 1979. He struggled at the plate, but his eye allowed him to post an on-base percentage of .310, and he stole 13 bases that year. Vollmer got more comfortable at the plate in 1980 to hit .297 while slugging .455 and driving in 24 runs. He would be a standout in 1981 in the postseason, earning all-regional honors. As a senior, Vollmer hit .285 while driving in 28 runs and stealing 23 bases. He was drafted in the 18th round by the Mariners and played the 1982 and 1983 seasons in their organization.
• Brandan Davis (football/cornerback, 2008-10)
• Tiffany Davis (women's basketball/guard, 2012-17)
• Jimmy Gatling (football/linebacker, 1982-85)
– John Parker, gamecockarchives.com
6. ⌚ Key Events (Countdown)
• May 8 – SEC Softball Tourney (12 days)
• May 21 – SEC Baseball Tourney (25)
• July 15 – SEC Media Days begins (80)
• July 20 – Ladies Football Clinic (85)
• Aug. 31 – Football: Gamecocks vs UNC (127)
More happenings
• April 29 – Lancaster, Spurs Up Tour
• April 30 – Greenville, Spurs Up Tour
• May 2 – York, Spurs Up Tour
• May 4 – Baseball: Earl Bass jersey retirement
• May 7 – Sumter, Spurs Up Tour
• May 8 – Myrtle Beach, Spurs Up Tour
• May 8 – Marion Gamecock Club meeting
• May 9 – Atlanta, Spurs Up Tour
• May 14 – Charleston, Spurs Up Tour
• May 18 – SC Legends Baseball Camp
Will Muschamp is scheduled to appear at all of the Spurs Up Tour events. More information, including locations and ticket prices, can be found here.
DID YOU KNOW? You can receive this report (Gamecock Nation Today) early each morning in your email inbox. Sign up here.
------------------------
Gamecock Nation Today
Friday, April 26, 2019
Good morning from Gamecock Central
Here is the schedule for this weekend:
Friday, April 26
• 7:30 am - Men's Golf: SEC Championship, Round 3
• 9 am - Track & Field: 125th Penn Relays, video
• 6 pm - Softball: Georgia, SECN
• 7:30 pm - Baseball: at Missouri, SECN+, TuneIn
Saturday, April 27
• 7 am - Track & Field: 125th Penn Relays, video
• 7:30 am - Men's Golf: SEC Championship, Quarterfinals
• 12 pm - Softball: Georgia, ESPN2
• 12:30 pm - Men's Golf: SEC Championship, Semifinals, SECN+*
• 7:30 pm - Baseball: at Missouri, SECN+, TuneIn
* Coverage begins at 4:30 pm
Sunday, April 28
• 7:30 am - Men's Golf: SEC Championship, Finals, SECN
• 3 pm - Softball: Georgia, ESPN2
• 3 pm - Baseball: at Missouri, SECN+, TuneIn
1. Gamecocks hosting first official visitors of the spring
South Carolina will host its first batch of 2020 prospects on official visits this weekend as two of the Gamecocks' top targets will spend 48 hours on campus getting a taste of college life and the staff's best recruiting pitches. But that's not all, several unofficial visitors are also scheduled to hit campus in what will be a key recruiting weekend.
Here's a look at the two official visitors the Gamecocks are set to host and two key unofficial visitors who will be on campus:
Four-star RB Tank Bigsby (official)
Bigsby is ranked a four-star "athlete" by Rivals.com, but is a running back on the Gamecocks' board and easily one of their top overall targets. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Hoganville (Ga.) Callaway standout has been high on the Gamecocks for some time and has been a mainstay on campus over the last five months.
LSU recently hosted Bigsby on an official visit and may be Carolina's biggest competition, though the Gamecocks are thought to be the favorite. Schools like Auburn, Alabama and Georgia are also involved with Bigsby, who could announce a decision soon.
Three-star OL Javion Cohen (official)
The offensive line MVP winner at the Rivals Atlanta camp, Cohen made waves last week when he decommitted from the Gamecocks just weeks after initially committing to the program.
The 6-foot-4, 275-pound offensive tackle from Phenix City (Ala.) Central remains high on South Carolina, but felt that he made a decision too quickly. This weekend will give offensive line coach Eric Wolford and Co. the chance to remind Cohen of all the reasons he chose the program in the first place. But a recent offer from Auburn looms large as Cohen has always been high on the Tigers.
Four-star DE Myles Murphy (unofficial)
South Carolina landed Murphy's four-star receiver teammate Mike Wyman earlier this month and hopes to make it a two from Greensboro's Dudley High as Murphy is a huge priority for them.
Murphy stopped just short of naming South Carolina his leader when we talked to him earlier this month, but make no mistake the Gamecocks are in great shape here. Murphy plans a return to campus on June 1 for an official visit and then will announce a decision later than month. He's also highly considering Alabama, North Carolina and LSU.
Three-star WR Ze'Vian Capers (unofficial)
A 6-foot-4, 215-pounder receiver who can go up and get the football, Capers is currently committed to Arkansas but has always had his eye on South Carolina and has family in the Palmetto State.
The Alpharetta (Ga.) Denmark playmaker will approach his visit to Columbia with an open mind as he's been receptive to pitches from both South Carolina and Tennessee despite his pledge to Arkansas. Currently a three-star, Capers is set to move up in the Rivals rankings. This was originally scheduled to be an official visit, but Capers tells us it's now been changed to an unofficial.
What exactly goes into an official visit weekend?
Will Muschamp addressed what's on deck for this weekend's visitors: "It's all about relationships. It's another opportunity, and this weekend is a little different for us, we do a lot more on campus than we do around our football facility to be able to see our beautiful campus.
"Sometimes when they come on a gameday atmosphere, they don't necessarily get to see that. We've got a great campus and it's a really good weekend for us to just continue to build relationships in the recruiting process."
South Carolina will also have multiple unofficial visitors on campus this weekend and we'll have complete coverage on GamecockCentral.com's premium message board, The Insiders Forum.
– Wes Mitchell
2. Baseball: USC travels to Missouri
Who: South Carolina (24-17, 5-13 SEC) vs. Missouri (27-15-1, 7-10-1 SEC)
Where: Taylor Stadium (Columbia, Mo.)
• Friday, 7:30 p.m., SECN+, TuneIn
• Saturday, 7:30 p.m., SECN+, TuneIn
• Sunday, 3 p.m., SECN+, TuneIn
Probable starting pitchers:
USC: RHP Reid Morgan (3-3, 3.55), RHP Cam Tringali (2-1, 3.33), TBA
Texas A&M: LHP Jacob Cantleberry (3-3, 4.08), LHP TJ Sikkema (4-3, 1.46), TBA
Missouri, while below .500 in conference play, has one of the better pitching staffs in the SEC, ranking fourth in staff ERA at 2.99 with 430 strikeouts.
Offensively the Tigers are 12th in hitting, slashing .259/.378/.397.
They have some decent SEC wins, taking series over LSU and Ole Miss, but are coming off getting swept by Georgia on the road and a midweek win over Missouri State.
Up next: With final exams this week, the Gamecocks don’t have a midweek game and will have all week off before hosting No. 6 Vanderbilt for a three-game series starting Friday.
Baseball Links: News | SEC Standings | Schedule | Statistics | Polls
– Collyn Taylor
3. This, that, and the other
Men's Basketball: Hasse transferring from Gamecocks - Rising junior forward Felipe Hasse will transfer from the men's basketball team, a school spokesperson confirmed Thursday afternoon. (link)
Baseball: Sightler, Campbell hoping Tuesday was 'good turning point' - Even when Josiah Sightler wasn’t in the lineup, you could find him swinging a bat while watching his team play every. Tuesday night, after a season full of struggles, he got a chance to use that bat in a game and may have done enough to keep using it this weekend. (link)
Football: Griffin reflects on USC career - Kelsey Griffin lettered for South Carolina from 2013 until 2016, playing in a total of 40 games. The Georgia native recently took time to speak with Gamecock Central's Chris Clark, and in this multi-part interview, went into detail on his career. (subscription)
Football Recruiting: Georgia's DJ Lundy talks Gamecocks - Georgia's DJ Lundy is one of the state's more intriguing talents. South Carolina is among the programs to have extended a verbal offer, and recently hosted him for a visit. (subscription)
Football: Video: Will Muschamp speaks at Midlands 'Spurs Up Tour' stop - Will Muschamp spoke with media prior to Wednesday's "Spurs Up Tour" stop in the Midlands. USC's head coach hit on several topics during his conversation with media members. (link)
NFL Draft: Where national outlets have Samuel, Daley getting drafted - Let the anticipation and hand-wringing commence. The NFL Draft starts Thursday night and with it comes a lot of patient waiting, stress for players watching pick after pick and the potential for a few Gamecock players' lives to change forever. (link)
Softball: Taking ene for the team is a common occurrence for trio - Three Gamecock softball players talk about why they value being hit by pitches. (link)
Football: Valentine returning to form on track, will rejoin football in June - For the time being, the South Carolina football team and the track and field program are sharing Lavonte Valentine and his 4.3 speed. (link)
Men's Tennis: Jubb and Rodrigues named first-team All-SEC - South Carolina men's tennis team had three student-athletes earn all-conference honors. (link)
Softball: Carolina set to host Georgia - The No. 14 softball team is set to host No. 15 Georgia for senior weekend this Friday through Sunday. (link)
Men's Golf: USC in eighth at SEC Championship - South Carolina is in eighth place at the 2019 SEC Championship after 36 holes of stroke play. (link)
– Jackson Fields
4. This Date in Gamecock History
April 26, 1985 – The Gamecocks routed Clemson, 14-2, thanks to jumping on Tiger pitcher Jerome Santivasci early and often.
- The Tigers actually took the lead in the first, 2-0, but Carolina responded with three solo home runs in the bottom of the first as Rob Rinehart, Joe Datin and Charlie Aldrich all hit solo homers and Jeff Churchich slammed a three-run shot for a 6-2 lead.
- USC pitcher Mike Cook made that lead stand up by giving up just one hit after the first inning, while Datin and Aldrich struck again later with back-to-back home runs in the fourth inning.
5. Birthdays and Celebrations!
Robby Vollmer – Joining the Gamecocks out of Plant High School in Tampa, Vollmer moved into a starting role in center field late in his freshman season of 1979. He struggled at the plate, but his eye allowed him to post an on-base percentage of .310, and he stole 13 bases that year. Vollmer got more comfortable at the plate in 1980 to hit .297 while slugging .455 and driving in 24 runs. He would be a standout in 1981 in the postseason, earning all-regional honors. As a senior, Vollmer hit .285 while driving in 28 runs and stealing 23 bases. He was drafted in the 18th round by the Mariners and played the 1982 and 1983 seasons in their organization.
• Brandan Davis (football/cornerback, 2008-10)
• Tiffany Davis (women's basketball/guard, 2012-17)
• Jimmy Gatling (football/linebacker, 1982-85)
– John Parker, gamecockarchives.com
6. ⌚ Key Events (Countdown)
• May 8 – SEC Softball Tourney (12 days)
• May 21 – SEC Baseball Tourney (25)
• July 15 – SEC Media Days begins (80)
• July 20 – Ladies Football Clinic (85)
• Aug. 31 – Football: Gamecocks vs UNC (127)
More happenings
• April 29 – Lancaster, Spurs Up Tour
• April 30 – Greenville, Spurs Up Tour
• May 2 – York, Spurs Up Tour
• May 4 – Baseball: Earl Bass jersey retirement
• May 7 – Sumter, Spurs Up Tour
• May 8 – Myrtle Beach, Spurs Up Tour
• May 8 – Marion Gamecock Club meeting
• May 9 – Atlanta, Spurs Up Tour
• May 14 – Charleston, Spurs Up Tour
• May 18 – SC Legends Baseball Camp
Will Muschamp is scheduled to appear at all of the Spurs Up Tour events. More information, including locations and ticket prices, can be found here.
