Yesterday, the Gamecocks wrapped up a successful initial January official visit weekend in hosting multiple committed prospects and uncommitted targets. We’ve already brought some returns from the visitors, but here’s more I’ve gathered over the weekend…
From South Carolina’s standpoint, the official visit for Hamsah Nasirildeen and his family could not have gone much better this weekend. As for Hamsah himself, his longtime preference has been to attend South Carolina, as he’s sold on everything about the program from coaching staff to distance and everything in between. South Carolina needed to make sure that everything checked out with Nasirildeen’s family; his mother had not been on campus for an extensive visit previously and USC needed to make sure that both parents were on board overall. That appears to be the case at this point. My belief is that as long as Florida State is out there, that there will still be some level of consternation on this one until Nasirildeen signs with the Gamecocks. Yet I do know that from every direction, the feedback was positive during the weekend (and directly after) in terms of Nasirildeen and his family being happy about his choice and that everyone feels much better about where things stand.
With the proliferation of film online, social media, and camps/combines all across the country, it’s harder to find a true undiscovered gem. Yet that may be exactly what South Carolina has unearthed in Georgia’s Jordan Rhodes. The South Carolina staff is very excited about landing his commitment over the weekend. The 6-foot-6, 300-pounder was on Creekside High’s football team in 2015, but his senior campaign marked the first season he actually played/started in games. To be in that position, yet have the film that Rhodes does is quite impressive. Rhodes has basketball feet (and a size 18 shoe), can get into space, and is a block finisher which South Carolina needs. Those familiar with him believe he’s just scratching the surface of what he can ultimately do. We’ll have even more on Rhodes here on GamecockCentral.com soon.
Speaking of the offensive line, the primary offensive lineman we’re tracking for the Gamecocks is Florida’s Jordon Carty. He should be visiting one of the next two weekends prior to signing day. Nothing’s set, but I’m anticipating a push to get him on campus this coming weekend. Carty has had some academic issues to work through but is a high upside player and someone that could do well in Columbia in time.
We’ve mentioned several times that despite USC bringing in Tony Gray for an official visit, that we do not anticipate him ending up in the class. I’ll reiterate that we’re not heavily tracking his recruitment as it pertains to USC at this time.
If USC can land Carty, there would not be room for any other offensive linemen in the class, barring a significant change down the stretch.
Things were close between Georgia and South Carolina for Bulldog pledge Devonte Wyatt heading into this weekend, and even more so after his visit to Columbia wrapped up this weekend. Wyatt was joined by his parents and coach on the trip, and the feedback was very positive about the visit. Wyatt himself said afterwards that Columbia was like home and that he was “going to miss it.” Wyatt’s head is all over the place right now, which is to be expected when he has two programs he has either been committed to or currently committed to still under heavy consideration.
I believe that if Wyatt was inking a letter of intent today, that he’d go with South Carolina. The problem is that national signing day is not today and he still has an official visit set for Georgia this coming weekend. It could very well seesaw yet again, and so on and so forth until Wyatt announces a choice on signing day. He’s still planning on heading to Florida the final weekend of the process, but it would be a surprise if the Gators could get into the mix to the extent that USC and Georgia are right now. Wyatt and his family have a high comfort level with South Carolina and the Gamecocks’ depth chart is more appealing at defensive tackle. On the other hand, Georgia’s the home state program and there’s been some tug on Wyatt to head to Athens. South Carolina has a real shot here, but the only way the recruitment can be summed up this: time will tell.
In-state defensive lineman Brad Johnson said directly after his official visit to USC that he was still planning on visiting Tennessee on January 20. On Sunday night, we got word that Johnson had cancelled that trip, meaning that he’ll decide between South Carolina and Virginia Tech. The Hokies’ Justin Fuente will conduct an in-home visit this week, and USC’s Will Muschamp will be in the following week. Johnson’s official visit to USC went very well and he’s built some relationships with current USC commitments (Jay Urich this weekend, Davonne Bowen from rooming with him at the Shrine Bowl). We’ve always viewed Johnson as someone much more likely to stay closer to home. Virginia Tech does have a legitimate shot; Johnson’s made an official visit there and really likes the coaching staff and defense, plus the Hokies made the conference title game in year one. Either program really could be the pick at the end of the process, but I do think one has to give the edge to the Gamecocks coming off the official.
USC defensive end target Aaron Sterling may fit in two official visits beginning this coming Thursday and running through the weekend. Georgia is expected to host him at some point, and that could be the Thursday trip. Sterling could see Tennessee directly on the heels of that. South Carolina, as we’ve said, will get the last official visit here. The Vols have been involved for some time, while Georgia’s involvement has been there but been more moderate. There’s still a high confidence level on South Carolina’s part in terms of ultimately landing Sterling.
The same goes for junior college defensive tackle target Javon Kinlaw, who visited Southern Cal this weekend. The Palmetto State native cancelled his planned trip to Alabama for this coming weekend; South Carolina gets the last crack during the final weekend prior to signing day. It would be a monumental upset if the Gamecocks did not land him at this point.
D.C. defensive tackle Jalen Twyman made it in for his official visit, but as we’ve mentioned we’re more heavily tracking some of the other defensive linemen we’ve mentioned.
As of this writing, we’re still expecting Georgia commitment Robert Beal to visit this coming weekend, but certainly there’s a possibility he could opt not to given his comments about “not going anywhere” (in terms of his UGA commitment) on social media. Even if he does make the USC trip, I find it more likely for him to stick with Georgia.
There have been ample questions about Jamyest Williams lately, given his scheduling of a Georgia official visit and the fact that he says that he will now have an “announcement” on national signing day between the Gamecocks and Bulldogs. I’d never want to say there’s no cause for concern in a situation like this because that would not be accurate. However, Williams has always spoken of making an official visit to Athens. The fact that he’s been there so often and is in close proximity does not equal him signing with the Dawgs (see: Kyle Davis in the past, who did the same and signed with Auburn). The feedback right now continues to be that Williams plans on signing with South Carolina, who will receive the last official visit and have near-unlimited contact in the days leading up to signing day because of it. Georgia has the home-state deal, Williams knows plenty of UGA commitments (such as teammate Deangelo Gibbs), but South Carolina’s standing has been the most firm in terms of relationships for a long time now. We’ll be closely monitoring this one and we’ll have to see if this coming weekend’s trip significantly alters things. For now, I’m still giving USC the best shot to hold onto Williams despite all the chatter about Georgia.
We obviously just ran through lots of names here, and I’m sure the primary question you have is: if USC can get into position to land some or all of these guys, how do they fit in a class? It’s true that USC has a hard 25 number that it has to hit in this class, and DB Mike Hughes also remains on the board as a possibility (no answer on that situation quite yet). My answer is that it will work out, there will be an internal plan in place by the staff, and we’ll bring you any and all developments as we can. South Carolina is not in a position to turn down guys that can help, particularly on the defensive line when there are several candidates out there.
From South Carolina’s standpoint, the official visit for Hamsah Nasirildeen and his family could not have gone much better this weekend. As for Hamsah himself, his longtime preference has been to attend South Carolina, as he’s sold on everything about the program from coaching staff to distance and everything in between. South Carolina needed to make sure that everything checked out with Nasirildeen’s family; his mother had not been on campus for an extensive visit previously and USC needed to make sure that both parents were on board overall. That appears to be the case at this point. My belief is that as long as Florida State is out there, that there will still be some level of consternation on this one until Nasirildeen signs with the Gamecocks. Yet I do know that from every direction, the feedback was positive during the weekend (and directly after) in terms of Nasirildeen and his family being happy about his choice and that everyone feels much better about where things stand.
With the proliferation of film online, social media, and camps/combines all across the country, it’s harder to find a true undiscovered gem. Yet that may be exactly what South Carolina has unearthed in Georgia’s Jordan Rhodes. The South Carolina staff is very excited about landing his commitment over the weekend. The 6-foot-6, 300-pounder was on Creekside High’s football team in 2015, but his senior campaign marked the first season he actually played/started in games. To be in that position, yet have the film that Rhodes does is quite impressive. Rhodes has basketball feet (and a size 18 shoe), can get into space, and is a block finisher which South Carolina needs. Those familiar with him believe he’s just scratching the surface of what he can ultimately do. We’ll have even more on Rhodes here on GamecockCentral.com soon.
Speaking of the offensive line, the primary offensive lineman we’re tracking for the Gamecocks is Florida’s Jordon Carty. He should be visiting one of the next two weekends prior to signing day. Nothing’s set, but I’m anticipating a push to get him on campus this coming weekend. Carty has had some academic issues to work through but is a high upside player and someone that could do well in Columbia in time.
We’ve mentioned several times that despite USC bringing in Tony Gray for an official visit, that we do not anticipate him ending up in the class. I’ll reiterate that we’re not heavily tracking his recruitment as it pertains to USC at this time.
If USC can land Carty, there would not be room for any other offensive linemen in the class, barring a significant change down the stretch.
Things were close between Georgia and South Carolina for Bulldog pledge Devonte Wyatt heading into this weekend, and even more so after his visit to Columbia wrapped up this weekend. Wyatt was joined by his parents and coach on the trip, and the feedback was very positive about the visit. Wyatt himself said afterwards that Columbia was like home and that he was “going to miss it.” Wyatt’s head is all over the place right now, which is to be expected when he has two programs he has either been committed to or currently committed to still under heavy consideration.
I believe that if Wyatt was inking a letter of intent today, that he’d go with South Carolina. The problem is that national signing day is not today and he still has an official visit set for Georgia this coming weekend. It could very well seesaw yet again, and so on and so forth until Wyatt announces a choice on signing day. He’s still planning on heading to Florida the final weekend of the process, but it would be a surprise if the Gators could get into the mix to the extent that USC and Georgia are right now. Wyatt and his family have a high comfort level with South Carolina and the Gamecocks’ depth chart is more appealing at defensive tackle. On the other hand, Georgia’s the home state program and there’s been some tug on Wyatt to head to Athens. South Carolina has a real shot here, but the only way the recruitment can be summed up this: time will tell.
In-state defensive lineman Brad Johnson said directly after his official visit to USC that he was still planning on visiting Tennessee on January 20. On Sunday night, we got word that Johnson had cancelled that trip, meaning that he’ll decide between South Carolina and Virginia Tech. The Hokies’ Justin Fuente will conduct an in-home visit this week, and USC’s Will Muschamp will be in the following week. Johnson’s official visit to USC went very well and he’s built some relationships with current USC commitments (Jay Urich this weekend, Davonne Bowen from rooming with him at the Shrine Bowl). We’ve always viewed Johnson as someone much more likely to stay closer to home. Virginia Tech does have a legitimate shot; Johnson’s made an official visit there and really likes the coaching staff and defense, plus the Hokies made the conference title game in year one. Either program really could be the pick at the end of the process, but I do think one has to give the edge to the Gamecocks coming off the official.
USC defensive end target Aaron Sterling may fit in two official visits beginning this coming Thursday and running through the weekend. Georgia is expected to host him at some point, and that could be the Thursday trip. Sterling could see Tennessee directly on the heels of that. South Carolina, as we’ve said, will get the last official visit here. The Vols have been involved for some time, while Georgia’s involvement has been there but been more moderate. There’s still a high confidence level on South Carolina’s part in terms of ultimately landing Sterling.
The same goes for junior college defensive tackle target Javon Kinlaw, who visited Southern Cal this weekend. The Palmetto State native cancelled his planned trip to Alabama for this coming weekend; South Carolina gets the last crack during the final weekend prior to signing day. It would be a monumental upset if the Gamecocks did not land him at this point.
D.C. defensive tackle Jalen Twyman made it in for his official visit, but as we’ve mentioned we’re more heavily tracking some of the other defensive linemen we’ve mentioned.
As of this writing, we’re still expecting Georgia commitment Robert Beal to visit this coming weekend, but certainly there’s a possibility he could opt not to given his comments about “not going anywhere” (in terms of his UGA commitment) on social media. Even if he does make the USC trip, I find it more likely for him to stick with Georgia.
There have been ample questions about Jamyest Williams lately, given his scheduling of a Georgia official visit and the fact that he says that he will now have an “announcement” on national signing day between the Gamecocks and Bulldogs. I’d never want to say there’s no cause for concern in a situation like this because that would not be accurate. However, Williams has always spoken of making an official visit to Athens. The fact that he’s been there so often and is in close proximity does not equal him signing with the Dawgs (see: Kyle Davis in the past, who did the same and signed with Auburn). The feedback right now continues to be that Williams plans on signing with South Carolina, who will receive the last official visit and have near-unlimited contact in the days leading up to signing day because of it. Georgia has the home-state deal, Williams knows plenty of UGA commitments (such as teammate Deangelo Gibbs), but South Carolina’s standing has been the most firm in terms of relationships for a long time now. We’ll be closely monitoring this one and we’ll have to see if this coming weekend’s trip significantly alters things. For now, I’m still giving USC the best shot to hold onto Williams despite all the chatter about Georgia.
We obviously just ran through lots of names here, and I’m sure the primary question you have is: if USC can get into position to land some or all of these guys, how do they fit in a class? It’s true that USC has a hard 25 number that it has to hit in this class, and DB Mike Hughes also remains on the board as a possibility (no answer on that situation quite yet). My answer is that it will work out, there will be an internal plan in place by the staff, and we’ll bring you any and all developments as we can. South Carolina is not in a position to turn down guys that can help, particularly on the defensive line when there are several candidates out there.
