From Chris Clark and Wes Mitchell, Inside the 2018 class is a multi-part look behind the scenes at each prospect that South Carolina signed in its 2018 class plus insight on several that the Gamecocks missed on. Enjoy the read then feel free to ask any questions below.
Quarterbacks
On-field issues with the offense aside, former South Carolina offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Kurt Roper had a knack for getting in on quarterback prospects well before they became highly recruited prospects and that was a common theme among the quarterbacks the Gamecocks recruited but didn't sign in the class.
We detailed how Carolina landed four-star quarterback Dakereon Joyner earlier and notable other quarterbacks that the Gamecocks were a factor for at one time include four-stars Joe Milton, Tyler Shough, and Jarren Williams and three-stars Chase Wolf, Jack Plummer and James Foster.
Milton, a huge-armed Rivals250 quarterback who ultimately signed with Michigan, camped at South Carolina two summers ago after already landing an offer from the Gamecocks a couple of months prior to that. At the time, Milton's offer list consisted of the Gamecocks, Iowa State and FAU and he had early strong interest in the program. But that faded a bit as multiple major programs jumped in with offers, including Florida, Miami and Georgia to name a few. There was some late chatter when the news hit that Shea Patterson would transfer to Michigan that Milton might look around, but the other school he likely would have looked into Florida again, as opposed to Carolina.
While Joyner didn't publicly commit to the Gamecocks until last July, he was a silent commit to Carolina well before that and a heavy lean even before that. News travels in recruiting circles and while there was an effort at one point for Carolina to sign two quarterbacks in the class, it hurt with other top prospects that they knew they'd be sharing the class with a four-star in-state quarterback if they chose the Gamecocks.
Carolina was a legitimate contender with both Shough and Wolf at one time and there was strong interest from both prospects. At one point in the process it looked most likely that if the Gamecocks were going to land a second quarterback in the class, then that quarterback would be Shough. Roper offered Shough last March, becoming the first Power 5 school to do so, and made a move when he visited for the spring game in the next month before a huge string of offers rolled in during the spring and summer months. As the recruitment of both wore on, the percentages shifted more towards Wolf being in the class and there was some confidence from the South Carolina offices that they would land him.
Shough ultimately committed to North Carolina, eventually flipping to Oregon where he signed, and Wolf landed with Wisconsin. While neither ever said it publicly, I believe the Joyner effect was a factor with both. That was almost certainly the case with Wolf, a prospect that had South Carolina as his behind the scenes leader at one point. The Ohio product visited USC at the end of March in 2017 and picked up an offer, with the Gamecocks quickly becoming a major factor in his decision-making process.
Towards the end, when Wolf ultimately committed to Wisconsin in May, things got a bit difficult to track. Some connected to the recruitment believed it would come down to Boston College or South Carolina, while Wisconsin had confidence as well. That culminated on a day in May 3in which we heard USC was in the race, then out, then perhaps still had a chance as Wolf was in the final stages of hashing out his decision. On May 5, he went with the Badgers, which had turned into the final expectation. The opportunity to be more of "the guy" there and the comfort level seemed to play a big role; Wisconsin parted ways days later with then-quarterback commitment Ben Bryant.
South Carolina was also an early factor and early offer for Williams, a two-time Kentucky commit who ended up with Miami, and Foster, a former UNC and Missouri commit, who ended up at Texas A&M. Foster visited Carolina for camp during the staff's first summer in Columbia and he seemed to be an important early target, but mutual interest seemed to wane for both Williams and Foster as the process went on.
As last summer came to a close, the staff eventually decided that it would not take a second quarterback in the class and would use that scholarship on another position. The last quarterback to potentially land an offer and become the second QB of the class, was Lakeland (Fla.) three-star dual-threat quarterback Kevaris Thomas. Like the aforementioned Milton, Thomas has a huge arm and impressed Roper with his throwing ability in camp this past summer. In fact, at one point the staff planned to offer Thomas and could have landed the eventual Western Kentucky signee, but reversed course and decided not to offer.
Another under-the-radar quarterback the staff liked a lot is Mobile (Ala.) St. Paul's two-star Georgia State signee Swift Lyle, but nothing ever really materialized there.
Running backs
One target with which there was substantial early mutual interest was North Carolina’s Zamir White. The five-star prospect first visited South Carolina in March 2015, hitting campus during the spring in which Steve Spurrier’s staff was still in place and picking up an offer. Once Will Muschamp was hired, the new staff lured him back to Columbia in July of 2016.
That visit really put the Gamecocks on the map with White with several family members accompanying him on the visit. There were plenty of reasons to believe that South Carolina was legitimately in the race. USC had some helpful connections to Scotland County, White’s high school, and Bobby Bentley put together a detailed plan for recruiting White to the Gamecocks. In addition to that, White told some people involved in his recruitment behind the scenes that Clemson and South Carolina were his two favorites.That, of course, would evolve.
Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio State, and South Carolina were all in the mix in the earlier stages with White, who visited USC for the East Carolina game early in the 2016 season.That December, the Gamecocks were still firmly in the race and White went ahead and announced that he was eyeing announcing a choice the following June.That would turn out to be a telling decision, with that date in June representing his mother’s birthday.
White’s mother was a key to his recruitment, and she would later state publicly that her two favorite schools were Alabama and Georgia.By mid-January, USC’s position with White had slipped.He listed a top four of Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, and North Carolina in the month of March. North Carolina’s position was probably the most difficult to figure out with White; there were so many various things said during the recruitment about the legitimacy of the Tar Heels challenging in the race.The truth behind the scenes was that Alabama and Georgia had made big plays, and indeed the Dawgs were ultimately able to seal the deal.
In the midst of everything happening with White, the Gamecocks were also recruiting Tennessee’s Master Teague, an eventual Ohio State signee. He first hit campus in the summer of 2016 and also during the 2016 football season, followed by a junior day trip in February the following year. Bentley and South Carolina impressed Teague and his family, and the Gamecocks were leading in the spring of 2017. Yet after that, things shifted again.Tennessee, which had not previously been a factor, made Teague’s May top three along with Georgia and Auburn, which had been a long-time challenger to the Gamecocks.
Bentley was also heavily involved at this same point with Deshaun Fenwick and had scouted both in the spring; the Gamecocks were very happy to get Fenwick in the boat. It was also apparent around this time that Teague and his family were not going to make plans to get back on campus in Columbia. Ohio State had long been viewed as a program that held substantial cards, should the Buckeyes offer. Teague held off on making a decision until he traveled to Columbus and camped, and earned his offer thereafter from the Buckeyes. It did not take long for him to commit.Clemson offered in November, but Teague was solid and signed with Ohio State during the early period.
USC also had involvement during the process with Auburn signee Shaun Shivers, a fast all-purpose back who camped with the Gamecocks during Will Muschamp’s first summer in Columbia. The following year there were some indications that Shivers would look around a bit with Carolina a school he was interested in, but nothing ultimately came of it and South Carolina was focused on other running back targets at the time.
Tight ends
South Carolina offered and recruited a few tight ends in the 2018 class, but after Tennessee product Gavin Schoenwald opted for Vanderbilt, the chances lessened of the staff taking a prospect at the position this cycle.
Schoenwald took multiple visits to South Carolina including a stop for the recruiting cookout last April that he raved about. Schoenwald hit it off with Hayden Hurst and loved the way the staff uses tight ends in the offense. It seemed like only a matter of time before Schoenwald would join the class, but his family eventually pushed heavily for the Brentwood (Tenn.) native to stay home and play for the Commodores.
USC got Georgia’s Tommy Tremble, an eventual Notre Dame signee, on campus during the summer for a camp workout in Columbia. His father, Greg, played with Will Muschamp at Georgia. Virginia’s James Mitchell, a Virginia Tech signee, visited USC more than once and South Carolina made his lead group. By that point, the focus was filling spots at other positions.
ALSO SEE: Inside the 2018 class: Part I | Inside the 2018 class: Part II | Inside the 2018 class: Part III
Quarterbacks
On-field issues with the offense aside, former South Carolina offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Kurt Roper had a knack for getting in on quarterback prospects well before they became highly recruited prospects and that was a common theme among the quarterbacks the Gamecocks recruited but didn't sign in the class.
We detailed how Carolina landed four-star quarterback Dakereon Joyner earlier and notable other quarterbacks that the Gamecocks were a factor for at one time include four-stars Joe Milton, Tyler Shough, and Jarren Williams and three-stars Chase Wolf, Jack Plummer and James Foster.
Milton, a huge-armed Rivals250 quarterback who ultimately signed with Michigan, camped at South Carolina two summers ago after already landing an offer from the Gamecocks a couple of months prior to that. At the time, Milton's offer list consisted of the Gamecocks, Iowa State and FAU and he had early strong interest in the program. But that faded a bit as multiple major programs jumped in with offers, including Florida, Miami and Georgia to name a few. There was some late chatter when the news hit that Shea Patterson would transfer to Michigan that Milton might look around, but the other school he likely would have looked into Florida again, as opposed to Carolina.
While Joyner didn't publicly commit to the Gamecocks until last July, he was a silent commit to Carolina well before that and a heavy lean even before that. News travels in recruiting circles and while there was an effort at one point for Carolina to sign two quarterbacks in the class, it hurt with other top prospects that they knew they'd be sharing the class with a four-star in-state quarterback if they chose the Gamecocks.
Carolina was a legitimate contender with both Shough and Wolf at one time and there was strong interest from both prospects. At one point in the process it looked most likely that if the Gamecocks were going to land a second quarterback in the class, then that quarterback would be Shough. Roper offered Shough last March, becoming the first Power 5 school to do so, and made a move when he visited for the spring game in the next month before a huge string of offers rolled in during the spring and summer months. As the recruitment of both wore on, the percentages shifted more towards Wolf being in the class and there was some confidence from the South Carolina offices that they would land him.
Shough ultimately committed to North Carolina, eventually flipping to Oregon where he signed, and Wolf landed with Wisconsin. While neither ever said it publicly, I believe the Joyner effect was a factor with both. That was almost certainly the case with Wolf, a prospect that had South Carolina as his behind the scenes leader at one point. The Ohio product visited USC at the end of March in 2017 and picked up an offer, with the Gamecocks quickly becoming a major factor in his decision-making process.
Towards the end, when Wolf ultimately committed to Wisconsin in May, things got a bit difficult to track. Some connected to the recruitment believed it would come down to Boston College or South Carolina, while Wisconsin had confidence as well. That culminated on a day in May 3in which we heard USC was in the race, then out, then perhaps still had a chance as Wolf was in the final stages of hashing out his decision. On May 5, he went with the Badgers, which had turned into the final expectation. The opportunity to be more of "the guy" there and the comfort level seemed to play a big role; Wisconsin parted ways days later with then-quarterback commitment Ben Bryant.
South Carolina was also an early factor and early offer for Williams, a two-time Kentucky commit who ended up with Miami, and Foster, a former UNC and Missouri commit, who ended up at Texas A&M. Foster visited Carolina for camp during the staff's first summer in Columbia and he seemed to be an important early target, but mutual interest seemed to wane for both Williams and Foster as the process went on.
As last summer came to a close, the staff eventually decided that it would not take a second quarterback in the class and would use that scholarship on another position. The last quarterback to potentially land an offer and become the second QB of the class, was Lakeland (Fla.) three-star dual-threat quarterback Kevaris Thomas. Like the aforementioned Milton, Thomas has a huge arm and impressed Roper with his throwing ability in camp this past summer. In fact, at one point the staff planned to offer Thomas and could have landed the eventual Western Kentucky signee, but reversed course and decided not to offer.
Another under-the-radar quarterback the staff liked a lot is Mobile (Ala.) St. Paul's two-star Georgia State signee Swift Lyle, but nothing ever really materialized there.
Running backs
One target with which there was substantial early mutual interest was North Carolina’s Zamir White. The five-star prospect first visited South Carolina in March 2015, hitting campus during the spring in which Steve Spurrier’s staff was still in place and picking up an offer. Once Will Muschamp was hired, the new staff lured him back to Columbia in July of 2016.
That visit really put the Gamecocks on the map with White with several family members accompanying him on the visit. There were plenty of reasons to believe that South Carolina was legitimately in the race. USC had some helpful connections to Scotland County, White’s high school, and Bobby Bentley put together a detailed plan for recruiting White to the Gamecocks. In addition to that, White told some people involved in his recruitment behind the scenes that Clemson and South Carolina were his two favorites.That, of course, would evolve.
Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio State, and South Carolina were all in the mix in the earlier stages with White, who visited USC for the East Carolina game early in the 2016 season.That December, the Gamecocks were still firmly in the race and White went ahead and announced that he was eyeing announcing a choice the following June.That would turn out to be a telling decision, with that date in June representing his mother’s birthday.
White’s mother was a key to his recruitment, and she would later state publicly that her two favorite schools were Alabama and Georgia.By mid-January, USC’s position with White had slipped.He listed a top four of Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, and North Carolina in the month of March. North Carolina’s position was probably the most difficult to figure out with White; there were so many various things said during the recruitment about the legitimacy of the Tar Heels challenging in the race.The truth behind the scenes was that Alabama and Georgia had made big plays, and indeed the Dawgs were ultimately able to seal the deal.
In the midst of everything happening with White, the Gamecocks were also recruiting Tennessee’s Master Teague, an eventual Ohio State signee. He first hit campus in the summer of 2016 and also during the 2016 football season, followed by a junior day trip in February the following year. Bentley and South Carolina impressed Teague and his family, and the Gamecocks were leading in the spring of 2017. Yet after that, things shifted again.Tennessee, which had not previously been a factor, made Teague’s May top three along with Georgia and Auburn, which had been a long-time challenger to the Gamecocks.
Bentley was also heavily involved at this same point with Deshaun Fenwick and had scouted both in the spring; the Gamecocks were very happy to get Fenwick in the boat. It was also apparent around this time that Teague and his family were not going to make plans to get back on campus in Columbia. Ohio State had long been viewed as a program that held substantial cards, should the Buckeyes offer. Teague held off on making a decision until he traveled to Columbus and camped, and earned his offer thereafter from the Buckeyes. It did not take long for him to commit.Clemson offered in November, but Teague was solid and signed with Ohio State during the early period.
USC also had involvement during the process with Auburn signee Shaun Shivers, a fast all-purpose back who camped with the Gamecocks during Will Muschamp’s first summer in Columbia. The following year there were some indications that Shivers would look around a bit with Carolina a school he was interested in, but nothing ultimately came of it and South Carolina was focused on other running back targets at the time.
Tight ends
South Carolina offered and recruited a few tight ends in the 2018 class, but after Tennessee product Gavin Schoenwald opted for Vanderbilt, the chances lessened of the staff taking a prospect at the position this cycle.
Schoenwald took multiple visits to South Carolina including a stop for the recruiting cookout last April that he raved about. Schoenwald hit it off with Hayden Hurst and loved the way the staff uses tight ends in the offense. It seemed like only a matter of time before Schoenwald would join the class, but his family eventually pushed heavily for the Brentwood (Tenn.) native to stay home and play for the Commodores.
USC got Georgia’s Tommy Tremble, an eventual Notre Dame signee, on campus during the summer for a camp workout in Columbia. His father, Greg, played with Will Muschamp at Georgia. Virginia’s James Mitchell, a Virginia Tech signee, visited USC more than once and South Carolina made his lead group. By that point, the focus was filling spots at other positions.
ALSO SEE: Inside the 2018 class: Part I | Inside the 2018 class: Part II | Inside the 2018 class: Part III
