44 | 2023 SOUTHERN FOOTBALL GUIDE
SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia, SC
HEAD COACH: Shane Beamer OC: Dowell Loggains DC: Clayton White
2022 RECORD: 8-5 (4-4) FOUNDED: 1801 STADIUM: Williams-Brice (80,250)
OFFENSE
DEFENSE
South Carolina won just eight games and finished .500 in the SEC, but over an eight-day span in November, the Gamecocks knocked Tennessee and Clemson out of the national playoff picture. Any offense with Spencer Rattler throwing to Juice Wells is going to be good. Produce a running game and develop two more receivers to complement Wells, and you could have a tremendous offense. Last season, the Gamecocks averaged just 3.8 yards a carry and gave up 31 sacks. For those numbers to improve dramatically, the offensive line must improve dramatically. Jakai Moore is the lone proven lineman at the FBS level. Three FCS transfers are among the two-deep, so they must develop quickly. Rattler threw for more than 3,000 yards, but only 18 TDs. Wells caught 68 for 928 yards. Eddie Lewis from Memphis and Trey Knox from Arkansas must step up to give Rattler more options.
Last season, the Gamecocks’ defense lagged behind most SEC counterparts. Opponents ran on South Carolina for 4.9 yards a pop and converted 43.4 percent on third down. South Carolina forced just 23 turnovers and totaled only 20 sacks. The portal didn’t produce any significant help for the defense, so the Gamecocks are counting on a year of development manifesting in improvement on the field. End Tonka Hemingway not only has the coolest name on the defense, he’s also the best playmaker with eight stops behind the line. That total may decrease this year if no one else asserts themselves around him. Linebacker Debo Williams is solid, but the secondary is asked to make way too many tackles. Nick Emmanwori was up to that task with 62 solo stops last season, almost twice as many as any teammate. Marcellus Dial had three picks and broke up 12 passes.
DEPTH CHART
DEPTH CHART
NO 7 0 3 17 85 1 55 72 53 69 62
PLAYER POS Spencer Rattler QB Juju McDowell RB Antwane Wells Jr. WR Xavier Legette WR Eddie Lewis WR Trey Knox TE Jakai Moore LT Trai Jones LG Vershon Lee C Nick Gargiulo RG Tyshawn Wannamaker RT
HT 6-1 5-9 6-1 6-3 6-0 6-5 6-6 6-2 6-4 6-5 6-3
WT 218 171 210 227 185 237 318 305 319 310 290
CLASS SR JR SR SR SR SR SR JR JR SR JR
NO 91 90 95 7 0 32 6 3 21 1 29
PLAYER Tonka Hemingway T.J. Sanders Alex Huntley Jordan Strachan Debo Williams Mohamed Kaba Marcellas Dial O’Donnell Fortune Nick Emmanwori DQ Smith David Spaulding
POS DE DT NT DE LB LB CB CB S S NB
HT 6-3 6-5 6-4 6-5 6-1 6-2 6-0 6-1 6-4 6-1 6-1
WT 295 300 305 245 235 239 192 180 215 210 197
CLASS SR SO JR SR JR JR SR JR SO SO SR
9 5 8 10 14 6 79 58 73 78 75
Luke Doty Dakereon Joyner Nyck Harbor Ahmarean Brown Elijah Caldwell Joshua Simon Jaxon Hughes Markee Anderson Ryan Brubaker Trovon Baugh Cason Henry
6-1 6-1 6-5 5-9 6-1 6-4 6-6 6-4 6-6 6-4 6-6
210 229 241 167 190 245 297 305 304 337 300
JR SR FR SR FR SR SR FR FR FR FR
10 93 11 4 52 22 20 23 13 31 18
Tyreek Johnson Nick Barrett Elijah Davis Terrell Dawkins Stone Blanton Bam Martin-Scott Judge Collier Isaiah Norris Kajuan Banks Peyton Williams Keenan Nelson Jr.
DE NT DT DE LB LB CB CB S S NB
6-3 6-3 6-3 6-4 6-2 6-2 6-1 5-11 5-10 6-0 6-1
265 325 285 260 235 227 195 185 187 205 205
SR JR JR SR SO SR FR SR SO FR FR
98 39
Mitch Jeter Kai Kroeger
195 220
SR SR
17 85
Xavier Legette Eddie Lewis
220 185
SR SR
QB RB WR WR WR TE LT LG C RG RT
SPECIAL TEAMS K P
5-10 6-4
2023 SCHEDULE S.2 ....North Carolina (Char.)
O.21 .......................at Missouri
S.9 ................................Furman
O.28 ..................at Texas A&M
S.16 .........................at Georgia
N.4 ............Jacksonville State
S.23 ............ Mississippi State
N.11 ........................Vanderbilt
S.30 ....................at Tennessee
N.18 ..........................Kentucky
O.14 ...............................Florida
N.25 ...........................Clemson
SPECIAL TEAMS KR PR
6-3 6-0
NEWCOMERS Markee Anderson, OL — Anderson ranked No. 7 as an interior offensive lineman. Given the Gamecocks’ low numbers upfront, he may see action early. Nyckoles Harbor, WR — The big target at 6’5”, 225 has run a 10.3 100m and was ranked the No. 15 player coming out of high school. It wouldn’t be a shocker to see him at defensive end. Jalon Kilgore, S — The athletic safety had a terrific spring. Grayson Howard, LB — The No. 9 linebacker in the nation enrolled in December and participated in bowl practices.
