W
Wes Mitchell
Guest
Greeleyville (S.C.) C.E. Murray three-star athlete Darius Rush committed to South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp in his office at the end of Saturday's junior day before going public with the pledge on Twitter today.
Rush is a life-long South Carolina fan and playing for the Gamecocks has been a dream of his, but putting that aside the reason that Rush made such an early decision is that it was apparent on the visit Saturday that the program checks all the boxes for what he's looking for.
From the leadership of Muschamp, the ability of receivers coach Bryan McClendon, the chance to play close to home, the facilities and the academic support that's in place, Rush felt completely comfortable with the program. I'd say that his lifelong dream put Carolina in the door, but the way they laid everything out to Rush and his family Saturday is what landed them the commitment.
Don't be fooled by Rush's offer list at this point. The Carolina staff is thrilled to have him and he was a priority target for them. Since Carolina offered Rush, his recruitment was starting to pick up considerably. Clemson, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech and North Carolina were among the numerous schools that started showing a lot of interest.
Clemson wanted for Rush to visit on March 4 and spent a great deal of time talking with both Rush and his former coach Brian Smith (now at Blythewood) about the success they've had taking small town athletes and molding them into NFL players. Clemson told Rush that if they weren't taking such a small class this year, that he'd already have an offer and were feeling out the possibility of Rush grayshirting.
I'd say the first thing that stands out about Rush is his character. He comes from an excellent family and is clearly the type of kid off the field that Carolina wants to build its program around. On the field, Carolina likes Rush for his pure, raw athletic abilities. Rush has played five different sports during his high school career (football, baseball, baseball, track and golf) and plays multiple positions (quarterback, receiver, returner, defensive back) within football.
While it's more and more common for athletes to specialize in one sport, this staff loves prospects who play multiple sports because it means they're likely no where near their ceiling as a player. Rush is able to do what he does on the field without the aid of a true weightlifting program. As a receiver, Rush isn't a pure burner but he has good ball skills and uses his 6-foot-2 frame to go over defenders and displays strong hands with the ability to catch the football away from his body. Rush is capable of playing safety, but I'd project him as an outside receiver in Carolina's scheme.
As a sophomore Rush was won the Class A boys’ title in the state high jump at 6-foot-4 and triple jump at 47-1 despite the fact that C.E. Murray does not have a track to practice on. Again, a lot of his success can be attributed to natural ability as his meets serve as practice time. Rush is potentially a national-level track athlete with the right training and the football staff has agreed he can participate in track at USC as long as he keeps his grades up.
Rush no longer plans to take visits to other schools and is shutting his recruitment down. He also plans to enroll early at South Carolina which should give him a led up in the adjustment process.
As a Carolina fan, a high character kid and a multi-sport standout, I can't think of a better prospect to kick off South Carolina's 2018 class in terms of being exactly the type of prospect Muschamp is trying to build his program around.
Rush is a life-long South Carolina fan and playing for the Gamecocks has been a dream of his, but putting that aside the reason that Rush made such an early decision is that it was apparent on the visit Saturday that the program checks all the boxes for what he's looking for.
From the leadership of Muschamp, the ability of receivers coach Bryan McClendon, the chance to play close to home, the facilities and the academic support that's in place, Rush felt completely comfortable with the program. I'd say that his lifelong dream put Carolina in the door, but the way they laid everything out to Rush and his family Saturday is what landed them the commitment.
Don't be fooled by Rush's offer list at this point. The Carolina staff is thrilled to have him and he was a priority target for them. Since Carolina offered Rush, his recruitment was starting to pick up considerably. Clemson, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech and North Carolina were among the numerous schools that started showing a lot of interest.
Clemson wanted for Rush to visit on March 4 and spent a great deal of time talking with both Rush and his former coach Brian Smith (now at Blythewood) about the success they've had taking small town athletes and molding them into NFL players. Clemson told Rush that if they weren't taking such a small class this year, that he'd already have an offer and were feeling out the possibility of Rush grayshirting.
I'd say the first thing that stands out about Rush is his character. He comes from an excellent family and is clearly the type of kid off the field that Carolina wants to build its program around. On the field, Carolina likes Rush for his pure, raw athletic abilities. Rush has played five different sports during his high school career (football, baseball, baseball, track and golf) and plays multiple positions (quarterback, receiver, returner, defensive back) within football.
While it's more and more common for athletes to specialize in one sport, this staff loves prospects who play multiple sports because it means they're likely no where near their ceiling as a player. Rush is able to do what he does on the field without the aid of a true weightlifting program. As a receiver, Rush isn't a pure burner but he has good ball skills and uses his 6-foot-2 frame to go over defenders and displays strong hands with the ability to catch the football away from his body. Rush is capable of playing safety, but I'd project him as an outside receiver in Carolina's scheme.
As a sophomore Rush was won the Class A boys’ title in the state high jump at 6-foot-4 and triple jump at 47-1 despite the fact that C.E. Murray does not have a track to practice on. Again, a lot of his success can be attributed to natural ability as his meets serve as practice time. Rush is potentially a national-level track athlete with the right training and the football staff has agreed he can participate in track at USC as long as he keeps his grades up.
Rush no longer plans to take visits to other schools and is shutting his recruitment down. He also plans to enroll early at South Carolina which should give him a led up in the adjustment process.
As a Carolina fan, a high character kid and a multi-sport standout, I can't think of a better prospect to kick off South Carolina's 2018 class in terms of being exactly the type of prospect Muschamp is trying to build his program around.
