W
Wes Mitchell
Guest
The commitment today of Winter Garden (Fla.) Foundation three-star EDGE Bryan Thomas Jr. shouldn't come as too much of a surprise after he said in his interview with Gamecock Central that he found everything he was looking for in a program during his South Carolina official visit this past weekend.
Thomas was down to South Carolina and West Virginia at the time, but that official visit, when he was hosted by Jordan Burch, helped push the Gamecocks over the top - or really confirm what he was already thinking in some ways - because South Carolina has really been perceived to be in a great position with him for weeks.
The 6-foot-1, 222-pound is an undersized but productive pass-rusher who has been a big contributor at Foundation since he was in the eighth grade and is the type of prospect who would have had the high ranking and bigger offers by his name if he had more prototypical length.
The Gamecocks took a long, up close look at Thomas in camp in late June, deciding that he was a definite take.
Looking at his highlights below, you can see that he's a high-energy, high-effort player with good get-off the ball and that he also uses his hands well to disengage blocks and seems to do a solid job of setting the edge and using his leverage against the run as well.
I like the effort on one play, in particular, when he chases down a ball carrier who had gotten free about 40 yards down field. Special teams coach Pete Lembo will also like having Thomas available as there are several clips of him playing on kickoff coverage and being the first player down the field for his team and then closing in on the kickoff returner for the tackle.
Before you ask, South Carolina is still pursuing and prioritizing both Jaishawn Barham and James Pearce, fellow pass-rush prospects, with no designs of turning either down.
While the defensive end spot is a strength for South Carolina this season, JJ Enagbare, Aaron Sterling and Jordan Strachan are all upperclassmen (Enagbare and Strachan can technically come back for another season if they want to but it seems unlikely both would, especially if Enagbare has the season he projects to) and it's important for the staff to keep that position re-stocked for the future.
Thomas was down to South Carolina and West Virginia at the time, but that official visit, when he was hosted by Jordan Burch, helped push the Gamecocks over the top - or really confirm what he was already thinking in some ways - because South Carolina has really been perceived to be in a great position with him for weeks.
The 6-foot-1, 222-pound is an undersized but productive pass-rusher who has been a big contributor at Foundation since he was in the eighth grade and is the type of prospect who would have had the high ranking and bigger offers by his name if he had more prototypical length.
The Gamecocks took a long, up close look at Thomas in camp in late June, deciding that he was a definite take.
Looking at his highlights below, you can see that he's a high-energy, high-effort player with good get-off the ball and that he also uses his hands well to disengage blocks and seems to do a solid job of setting the edge and using his leverage against the run as well.
I like the effort on one play, in particular, when he chases down a ball carrier who had gotten free about 40 yards down field. Special teams coach Pete Lembo will also like having Thomas available as there are several clips of him playing on kickoff coverage and being the first player down the field for his team and then closing in on the kickoff returner for the tackle.
Before you ask, South Carolina is still pursuing and prioritizing both Jaishawn Barham and James Pearce, fellow pass-rush prospects, with no designs of turning either down.
While the defensive end spot is a strength for South Carolina this season, JJ Enagbare, Aaron Sterling and Jordan Strachan are all upperclassmen (Enagbare and Strachan can technically come back for another season if they want to but it seems unlikely both would, especially if Enagbare has the season he projects to) and it's important for the staff to keep that position re-stocked for the future.
