C
Collyn Taylor
Guest
Been a busy time in hoops and hoops recruiting, so wanted to pass along some offers that went out, new names to watch and an update on bigs recruiting.
South Carolina recently offered two players in the 2020 class in three-star guard Devin Carter and three-star wing Tony Sanders Jr. Carter is getting some attention from some good P5 programs like Georgia Tech and Colorado. Sanders has been receiving attention from the Gamecocks recently, obviously, and Frank Martin was down in South Florida to visit with him. Has some pretty good offers from Florida State, Georgia, Xaiver, Michigan, Florida, etc.
https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2020/devin-carter-233113
In terms of the class, they have a big committed already in Patrick Iriel and are recruiting a few more (we'll get to that soon) but if they have another spot open, I would be surprised to see a wing or longer guard taken. Wing is probably the No. 1 priority after a big with a really deep guard group right now. Earl Timberlake Jr., who the Gamecocks are recruiting, also falls into that wing category.
John Butler Jr. also picked up an offer. We talked a little about it (it was on a football Saturday so may have gotten glossed over) but he's one of the best bigs in the 2021 class, and one of the better players in the state.
He's a legacy at South Carolina (both parents went to school at South Carolina and his mom played hoops in Columbia) and isn't a stranger to the program. He grew up going to games at Williams-Brice, etc. and has been on campus a bunch of times recently, including once in early September before the offer. This is what we had on him then.
I don't know if being a legacy has any impact on his recruiting, but South Carolina is recruiting him right now and he's been receptive to what they've said. Clemson, Tennessee, Georgia Tech, Memphis and St. Louis are all teams he's referenced when talking to me about his recruitment.
Now, let's get to the bigs and the recruiting board. South Carolina recently saw two of the names they'd been recruiting going off the board with Obinna Anochili-Killen committing to Marshall recently and four-star prospect Cliff Omoruyi trimming his list and not including South Carolina.
We've mentioned (above and before) getting another big in this class is going to be imperative with both Maik Kotsar and Micaiah Henry leaving after the season and they have some options there. The most likely right now is local three-star prospect Ja'Von Benson out of Ridge View. The feedback I've received on the Gamecocks recruiting him has been positive and they've built a good relationship with the coaching staff. He's in the process right now of making a decision between South Carolina and College of Charleston. He got his Rivals rating recently and is a three-star big man.
Another guy the Gamecocks have shown interest in is seven-footer Josh Gray out of New York. He's getting a lot of interest from Power 5 programs, South Carolina being one of them. Chuck Martin was up there earlier in the year to visit with him and saw him again at the Top 100 camp this summer in Virginia.
No visit is set up yet, but he mentioned to me this summer them wanting to get him down to Columbia at some point during his senior season. He really didn't dive into his recruiting until starting his senior year, so he has a little while to go in his decision making.
A quick name to pay attention to on the recruiting trail is 2021 guard Jalen Miller out of Maryland. It's still very early in the recruitment process for him since he's only a junior, but he's gotten some interest from Rutgers and told me today South Carolina has been recruiting him. He's from the Washington D.C. area and Bruce Shingler has a lot of connections there after coaching AAU ball there for a while before getting into college coaching.
South Carolina recently offered two players in the 2020 class in three-star guard Devin Carter and three-star wing Tony Sanders Jr. Carter is getting some attention from some good P5 programs like Georgia Tech and Colorado. Sanders has been receiving attention from the Gamecocks recently, obviously, and Frank Martin was down in South Florida to visit with him. Has some pretty good offers from Florida State, Georgia, Xaiver, Michigan, Florida, etc.
https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2020/devin-carter-233113
In terms of the class, they have a big committed already in Patrick Iriel and are recruiting a few more (we'll get to that soon) but if they have another spot open, I would be surprised to see a wing or longer guard taken. Wing is probably the No. 1 priority after a big with a really deep guard group right now. Earl Timberlake Jr., who the Gamecocks are recruiting, also falls into that wing category.
John Butler Jr. also picked up an offer. We talked a little about it (it was on a football Saturday so may have gotten glossed over) but he's one of the best bigs in the 2021 class, and one of the better players in the state.
He's a legacy at South Carolina (both parents went to school at South Carolina and his mom played hoops in Columbia) and isn't a stranger to the program. He grew up going to games at Williams-Brice, etc. and has been on campus a bunch of times recently, including once in early September before the offer. This is what we had on him then.
I don't know if being a legacy has any impact on his recruiting, but South Carolina is recruiting him right now and he's been receptive to what they've said. Clemson, Tennessee, Georgia Tech, Memphis and St. Louis are all teams he's referenced when talking to me about his recruitment.
Now, let's get to the bigs and the recruiting board. South Carolina recently saw two of the names they'd been recruiting going off the board with Obinna Anochili-Killen committing to Marshall recently and four-star prospect Cliff Omoruyi trimming his list and not including South Carolina.
We've mentioned (above and before) getting another big in this class is going to be imperative with both Maik Kotsar and Micaiah Henry leaving after the season and they have some options there. The most likely right now is local three-star prospect Ja'Von Benson out of Ridge View. The feedback I've received on the Gamecocks recruiting him has been positive and they've built a good relationship with the coaching staff. He's in the process right now of making a decision between South Carolina and College of Charleston. He got his Rivals rating recently and is a three-star big man.
Another guy the Gamecocks have shown interest in is seven-footer Josh Gray out of New York. He's getting a lot of interest from Power 5 programs, South Carolina being one of them. Chuck Martin was up there earlier in the year to visit with him and saw him again at the Top 100 camp this summer in Virginia.
No visit is set up yet, but he mentioned to me this summer them wanting to get him down to Columbia at some point during his senior season. He really didn't dive into his recruiting until starting his senior year, so he has a little while to go in his decision making.
A quick name to pay attention to on the recruiting trail is 2021 guard Jalen Miller out of Maryland. It's still very early in the recruitment process for him since he's only a junior, but he's gotten some interest from Rutgers and told me today South Carolina has been recruiting him. He's from the Washington D.C. area and Bruce Shingler has a lot of connections there after coaching AAU ball there for a while before getting into college coaching.
