USC Recruiting News

[Wynnco.com]

August 01, 2007
Sommer Open Ups Recruiting
By Phil Kornblut

WR Brian Sommer (6-1 198) of Alcoa, TN has been favoring USC for much of the recruiting process, but he said Wednesday night he's no longer favoring any school. "There's no clear favorite anymore," Sommer said. "I'll narrow my list down a couple of weeks into the season and then decide on official visits. I won't decide until after the season, and it might not be until Signing Day." Sommer said he received a text message from USC recruiter Steve Spurrier Jr. Tuesday night "just telling me my name is still on top of the list." Sommer visited Kentucky earlier this summer and plans to attend games this season at USC, Tennessee, Alabama and others. Those three have offered along with Ole Miss, Colorado and Kentucky. He is also hearing from Louisville, Michigan, Purdue, NC State and Florida.

[Wynnco.com]

August 01, 2007
Munroe Down To Final Seven
By Phil Kornblut

From some twenty offers, LB Malcolm Munroe (6-3 215) of Miami has trimmed his list to a final group of USC, Florida, Central Florida, Georgia Tech, Auburn, Louisville and Wisconsin. He visited Florida earlier this summer and said he will set official visits for the fall with USC, Georgia Tech, Auburn, Louisville and Wisconsin. Munroe said he hears regularly from Gamecock recruiter Robert Gillespie. He won't have a decision until after the season and he does not have a favorite. Last season Munroe had 55 tackles with 6 sacks, 11 tackles for loss, 5 forced fumbles and 2 blocked kicks.

[Wynnco.com]

August 02, 2007
Chambers Names Top Seven
By Matt Long

WR O'Neil Chambers (6-3 205) of St. Cloud, FL has over a dozen offers, including Purdue, Maryland, USC, BYU, Georgia Southern, Georgia, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Houston, Mississippi State, and Troy. "I just got an offer from Purdue last week," Chambers said, "So I'm interested in them." Chambers also said he likes Maryland, Miami, BYU, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. He attended camps at Maryland, Florida, and South Florida, and made a long trip west where he went to a camp at BYU, and visited Texas Tech, Texas, and Texas A&M. He was originally scheduled to visit USC and Georgia in July after the Friday Night Lights camp in Gainesville, but was unable to make the trip. "Hopefully, I'll be able to get up there before the season starts," Chambers said, "But I don't know." Chambers, who caught 17 passes for 303 yards last year, said that he wants to take official visits, but does not yet know where. "I'm going to commit after my senior season. I'll see what happens," Chambers said.

[Wynnco.com]

August 02, 2007
Receiver Would Love USC Attention
By Phil Kornblut

WR Daniel Bryant (6-2 187) of Tallahassee has several major offers, but the one he covest most is USC, and so far he's not heard from the Gamecocks. "I have family in South Carolina," Bryant said. "I love Steve Spurrier. I'm waiting on an offer from them. They are in my top five. If they offer me, I'd be real happy. I'd knock some schools off my list and get down to the top three." Bryant has offers from Alabama, Florida State, Florida, Purdue, Ole Miss, Auburn, Illinois, South Florida, Rutgers, Arkansas and Florida International. He is also hearing from Georgia. Last season Bryant caught 39 passes for 500 yards and 4 touchdowns.

[Wynnco.com]

August 02, 2007
Lewis Favoring ACC Schools
By Phil Kornblut

OL Justin Lewis (6-4 300) of Johnsonville has offers from NC State, Maryland, SC State and Buffalo and has drawn interest from USC and Clemson. He currently favors the Wolfpack and Terps "because they have offered." Lewis camped at his favorites in June. He said USC and Clemson plans to get back in touch with him later. He is planning to take official visits to Maryland, NC State, USC and SC State.

[Wynnco.com]

August 02, 2007
USC Recruit's Appeal Denied
By Phil Kornblut

An appeal for admission to USC by signee DB Arkee Smith of Jacksonville, FL was given the final turn down Thursday according to sources familiar with the decision. Gamecock head coach Steve Spurrier, according to a source, was very upset over the denial of eligibility. Smith is the third member of this year's recruiting class to be denied admission to the university despite having been approved by the NCAA Clearinghouse. A total of four Gamecock recruits will enroll elsewhere this fall and a fifth, DB Akeem Auguste, retook the ACT Thursday in a final attempt to qualify for freshman eligiblity.

[Wynnco.com]

August 03, 2007
Jenkins Adjusts Visits Schedule
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Janoris Jenkins (6-0 181) of Pahokee, FL is making official visits to USC and Clemson this weekend. He had planned to be at USC Friday and Clemson Saturday, but the schedule was pushed back. Jenkins and his traveling crew won't arrive at USC until late Friday night. He will visit with the Gamecocks Saturday and then travel up to Clemson Saturday night. He will spend Sunday with the Tigers before returning home. Joining Jenkins on the visit is junior receiver Nukees Richardson.

[Wynnco.com]

August 04, 2007
Jenkins Checks Out USC & Clemson
By Phil Kornblut

Saturday was a busy day for DB Janoris Jenkins (6-0 181) of Pahokee, FL. He made unofficial visits to USC and Clemson and found much to like at both schools. "I liked the campus and the coaches at South Carolina," Jenkins said Saturday night from his hotel room in Columbia. "They showed me around and showed me some love. The players welcomed me like I was already there. I talked with coach Spurrier. He recruits players who know the system of winning. At Clemson, when I got there all the coaches were waiting outside. They showed me the campus and the dorms and some of the defensive schemes. I met with the academic people, and I watched them practice. I also talked with coach Bowden." Jenkins said he liked both schools equally and has no overall favorite. He was joined on his USC visited by his junior teammate WR Nukees Richardson. Richardson did not make the trip to Clemson. Jenkins also has offers from Miami, Florida, Auburn, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida State, West Virginia, LSU and Wake Forest. He does not plan to make a quick decision.

[Wynnco.com]

August 05, 2007
Spurrier Speaks Out About Rejected Recruits
By Phil Kornblut

USC football coach Steve Spurrier took the opportunity of his Media Day news conference Sunday to express his feelings about the university's denial of admission of two of his recruits, both of whom had qualified under the NCAA standards. Following is the text of his comments:

"Again, I've got to apologize to two young men that we recruited and they qualified, they signed with us in February, and they were denied admission to our school. Personally, I don't think that's the way you do business. I'm embarrassed that I, and our coaches, basically misled these young men into believing they were coming here. Now, I'm not blasting the president or the provost. The president has already told me how we're going to change how we do admissions here, but I think we need to get it out to the high school coaches and the players out there that this is not going to happen again. As a head coach, one of the big things I've always tried to follow, in a player-coach relationship, honesty has to be the centerpiece of everything you have to do with your players. And it starts when you recruit them. I don't always tell recruits what they want to hear. I try to be honest with them and all I ever guarantee is an opportunity. And when you tell a young man that if he qualifies he's coming to your school and it doesn't happen, somebody is misleading, and it's me. I'm the guy. The head coach is the face of every college football program. It's my fault. It's nobody else's fault but mine. This happened two years ago with a couple of players. I begged and pleaded, pleaded and begged, and our provost relented and let them in. They were very good players and both started last year. It happened again this year. One of the three got in. But we had a plan in place that if we oversigned, there's a perception out there that South Carolina oversigned and that they are just getting rid of guys, and that's not true. That's not true on our coaching staff. We had a plan in place to grayshirt if they all qualified. We were going to to that. As it turned out, we're not going to have to do that right now. In my opinion, our school, me, we made a mistake in doing this. Again, I'm not criticizing the president, he said we're going to change how we do it. We're going to change, but for our creditibility, mine and the coaching staff, I just want the high school coaches, the parents of the players and all of them to know that that's not going to happen here if I continue to be the coach, and I plan on being the coach here a long time. We can have a heck of a big time college football program here at South Carolina if we want to do things the right way, and we've got to do things the right way. Hopefully, I truly believe this is the last year this is going to happen because I can't operate like that. I can't operate misleading young men. And our coaches can't. We suffered a severe blow credebility wise around North Carolina, Anson County, where Michael Bowman is from, and Jacksonville, FL where Arkee Smith is from. I'm trying to do what I can to help that right now and to try to restore whatever credibility that we can get in those schools. As long as I'm the coach here, we're going to take guys that qualify. If not, then I'm going to have to go somewhere else because I can't tell a young man you come to school here, he qualifies, and not do that. And we did that this year."

[Wynnco.com]

August 05, 2007
USC Counting On Baker, Allen For '08
By Phil Kornblut

USC is expecting to have 2007 non-qualifiers RB Eric Baker and DB Antonio Allen as part of their 2008 recruiting class. Both will enroll at Fork Union Prep, VA for the coming semester with a goal towards qualifying in time to enroll at USC in January. The Gamecocks continue to wait on DB Akeem Auguste as he attempts to qualify in time for this season. Auguste retook the ACT last Thursday and should have his score back within a couple of weeks. Should he not qualify on that test, he, too, will enroll at Fork Union where he will try to qualify for eligibility at USC starting in January. Likewise, Clemson can add LB Stanley Hunter to its 2008 commitment list. Hunter failed to qualify for eligibility this season and plans to remain at his home in Duncan to work on getting the qualifying test score so that he can enroll in school in January.

[Wynnco.com]

August 05, 2007
Terps Looking Hard At Hawkins
By Phil Kornblut

WR Randall Hawkins (6-2 190) of Byrnes says he's getting the strongest interest right now from Maryland and feels there's a possibility of an offer from the Terps. He also is hearing from Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, Rutgers and Virginia Tech. He's not hearing from USC or Clemson. He visited Rutgers, Virginia Tech and Maryland earlier in the summer. Hawkins was one of the state's leading receivers last season with 85 catches for 1260 yards and 17 touchdowns.

[Wynnco.com]

August 05, 2007
Georgia Lineman Favors USC
By Phil Kornblut

DL Randy Salmon (6-3 290) of Stockbridge, GA says USC is his current favorite, and if things work out well for him academically, he'll commit to the Gamecocks. "I visited there about two weeks ago," he said. "I'm just trying to get my GPA up so I can accept their offer and go there." Salmon visited Florida in June. He has offers from USC, NC State, Troy, UAB, Southern Miss, Georgia Southern, Louisiana Tech and Ohio. He is also hearing from Florida, LSU, Purdue, Michigan and North Carolina. He plans to set official visits with USC, Florida and NC State.

[scfan5338]

Just seems like not as many players are interested in us as this time last year..or maybe I'm just not following recruting that much. Saw that not many guys on Rivals 100 have us among the favorites but I guess that can/will change once we hit the fields. I think the whole admission's thing is going to hurt us in recruting because if kids pass the clearinghouse they expect to be accepted into the school and we keep denying them. It's great that we have raised our standards but we should let the coaches know not to recruit players that will not qualify because that in a way hurts our reputation as a university and Spurrier's which means it will hurt us in recruting.

[palmettocock]

Just seems like not as many players are interested in us as this time last year..or maybe I'm just not following recruting that much. Saw that not many guys on Rivals 100 have us among the favorites but I guess that can/will change once we hit the fields. I think the whole admission's thing is going to hurt us in recruting because if kids pass the clearinghouse they expect to be accepted into the school and we keep denying them. It's great that we have raised our standards but we should let the coaches know not to recruit players that will not qualify because that in a way hurts our reputation as a university and Spurrier's which means it will hurt us in recruting.

I think last year was sort of a "freak" thing with all those recruits being friends and "pieces of the puzzle." Just remember that its early and winning solves EVERYTHING. There's no way a top recruit could ignore us if we win the east, and Spurrier's on his doorstep!:thumpsup:

[Williams-Brice]

Just seems like not as many players are interested in us as this time last year..or maybe I'm just not following recruting that much. Saw that not many guys on Rivals 100 have us among the favorites but I guess that can/will change once we hit the fields. I think the whole admission's thing is going to hurt us in recruting because if kids pass the clearinghouse they expect to be accepted into the school and we keep denying them. It's great that we have raised our standards but we should let the coaches know not to recruit players that will not qualify because that in a way hurts our reputation as a university and Spurrier's which means it will hurt us in recruting.

Don't worry. We have to be very selective this year. Also, you have to look at the situations we had in our favor last year. Wake Forest was the only North Carolina team worth a dern last year, and two of the schools lost their coaches. That made it very easy for us to make a move in that state. Only one major school in Florida was not in some sort of turmoil with their coaching staff, and it made it very easy for us to make a move in that state.

We are in very good shape with a lot of good players out there. Things just aren't as public as they were last year.

This academics thing won't hurt us as much as some people are suggesting. It's going to be an issue, mainly because other schools will use it against us. However, I trust that when Spurrier says something is going to change, it will change. His track record has given high school coaches and players no reason to second guess him either. We're still going to have a very good class. Top 25 good.

[WayzUp]

We won't be bringing in as many either so we almost have to be a little more selective this year compared to last. The way I see it this year, if we take care of business on the field, recruiting will take care of itself in terms of us getting guys we need to fill the holes we'll have after graduation. We'll be fine....

[Wynnco.com]

August 06, 2007
Auguste Headed To Prep School
By Phil Kornblut

USC signee Akeem Auguste said Monday night he had failed in his final attempt to qualify for freshman eligibility and will enroll at Fork Union Prep, VA August 15th. Auguste retook the ACT last Thursday and needed to score at least a 19 to qualify. He said he remains committed to the Gamecocks and hopes to qualify in time to enroll in January. He will join two other 2007 USC non-qualifiers at Fork Union, DB Antonio Allen and RB Eric Baker.

[Wynnco.com]

August 06, 2007
Committed McCray Will Visit USC
By Phil Kornblut

LB Lerentee McCray (6-2 205) of Dunnellon, FL is a Miami commitment and he says he's still pretty firm with that pledge, but he does plan to take visits to other schools. He said he is looking at official visits with Tennessee, Southern Cal and Wisconsin, and would like to come in for at least one USC home game. "I'm thinking about coming in for the Florida game," he said adding that he was hearing regularly from Gamecock recruiter Steve Spurrier Jr. until the texting ban took affect. "I want to come in to see how they play." McCray had 102 tackles and 11 sacks last season.

[Wynnco.com]

August 06, 2007
Page Should Have List Cut Next Week
By Phil Kornblut

OL Kenneth Page (6-3 290) of AC Flora is expected to trim his list of nearly 40 offers to a more manageable number by next week according to his coach. "He's still trying to narrow it," Robin Bacon said. "It has been tough for him." Among his offers are USC, Clemson, Georgia Tech, Stanford, Tennessee, Florida, Florida State, Alabama, Penn State, Oklahoma, Auburn, Stanford, Kentucky, Nebraska, Notre Dame and Georgia. Page made several unofficial visits this summer and has said two possible official visits are Stanford and Notre Dame.

[palmettocock]

Ok so lets say all of our prep school guys sign with us...thats:

5 star Darriel King
4 star Akeeme Auguste...subject to change in 08
3 star Shaq Wilson...subject to change in 08
3 star Eric Baker...subject to change in 08
3 star Reid McCollum
3 star TJ Johnson
3 star Jay Spearman

thats not too shabby of a start if you ask me

[Williams-Brice]

TJ Johnson is subject to change, too. This class is going to be solid. Let's just give it time. The important thing is that we get the guys our coaches want. We're going to get Womble. It's a USC-UNC battle, and we'll take care of that in a few months. We got the QB we wanted. We're going to get the receivers we want. We're up there with some top notch linemen. The only thing we need to be concerned with is the linebacker slots. We've lost out on a lot of guys we wanted, but we're still going to get some quality guys in here. Everything will work out.

[Wynnco.com]

August 07, 2007
NJ Star Excited About USC Offer
By Matt Long

ATH Brandon Smith (6-3 210) of New Brunswick, NJ currently has over 30 offers, but doesn't plan to narrow down his list just yet. "I had felt that everybody had offered me, so I started to narrow down my list," Smith said "But then South Carolina came with an offer and made everything wide open again." Smith also holds offers from Michigan, Rutgers, Wisconsin, Virginia, Louisville, NC State, and West Virginia, among many others. Smith, who racked up 1,053 pass yards as a quarterback and 60 tackles and 9 interceptions as a safety, has been quiet this summer, only attending the X-treme X-posure Camp in his home state. "When you have 30 offers and all you've done is send tape. there's no need to go to combines or things like that," said New Brunswick coach John Quinn. Smith will wait until the fall officials period before he takes any visits. "I'm taking an official to Michigan on September 21st," Smith said, "I'm going to Wisconsin, definitely." He said that he will wait to make sure he has gotten all his offers before he narrows his list down. He said that if he makes the All-American game this year (he is on the list of nominees), he will make a commitment at the game. QB Coach David Reaves is recruiting Smith for USC.

[Wynnco.com]

August 07, 2007
Streeter Plans Fall USC Visit
By Phil Kornblut

WR Tommy Streeter (6-5 200) of Miami has seen his offer list grow to USC, Boston College, North Carolina, Miami, South Florida, Central Florida, Florida International, Connecticut, Rutgers and Pittsburgh. He has not trimmed his list and is not close on a decision. He has, however, decided to spend one of his official visits this fall at USC. The date has not been set. He has not decided on his other visits. Streeter said he called Gamecock recruiter Robert Gillespie Monday and talked with him. He added that Miami also is recruiting him hard.

[Wynnco.com]

August 07, 2007
Page Watches Gamecocks
By Phil Kornblut

OL Kenneth Page (6-3 290) of AC Flora made an unofficial visit to USC Tuesday night to watch the Gamecocks practice. The visit was one of several recent unofficial visits Page has made including Alabama, Auburn and Georgia Tech. And he has said he plans to make an unofficial visit to Clemson at some point to watch the Tigers practice. Page has nearly 40 offers and is expected to announce his short list next week.

[Wynnco.com]

August 08, 2007
Willard To Announce Wednesday
By Phil Kornblut

LB Jonathan Willard (6-2 205) of Loris will announce his college commitment today at a news conference at his school at 4:00 PM. Willard will choose from USC, Clemson and Tennessee.

[Wynnco.com]

August 08, 2007
Smith Not Rushing New Decision
By Phil Kornblut

After being denied admission to USC despite having met the NCAA requirements, DB Arkee Smith (6-2 190) finds himself back on the market and drawing interest from several programs. Smith said Wednesday night he has offers from Minnesota, Cincinnati, Tennessee State, Florida International, Florida Atlantic and Bethune Cookman. "I've talked to the Minnesota head coach," Smith said adding that some of the schools need to see his transcripts before moving forward. Smith said he was not rushing into a decision and has no favorite. He said USC has helped him by contacting other schools on his behalf. Smith said is coach suggested he wait until January to make a decision because he likely would have more offers, but Smith said he's not interested in doing that. "If I wait till January, I probably won't want to play no more."

[JDStud6]

"I probably won't want to play no more" ....and people wonder why he was rejected from USC :)

JD

[Wynnco.com]

August 09, 2007
Tallahassee DB Has 50 to Choose From
By Matt Long

DB T.J. Bryant (6-1 175) of Lincoln HS in Tallahassee, FL is one of the top cornerback prospects in the state of Florida, and has the offer list to prove it. "Name a school and he's probably heard from them," said his head coach Kyle Rice. Some major offers include Florida State, Florida, Miami, Georgia, Alabama, Clemson, USC, and about 50 others. As a team policy, Lincoln players do not attend camps or combines, so Bryant has had a quiet summer. He has made unofficial visits to Alabama and Florida, however, and will try to cut his list soon. "We're going to (narrow it down) before our first game," Rice said. Bryant alternated between safety and cornerback last season, but Rice said he is mainly being recruited as a corner. WR coach Dabo Swinney is recruiting Bryant for Clemson, while special teams coach Shane Beamer is the Gamecocks' recruiter.

[Wynnco.com]

August 09, 2007
Ford Still Attracting USC & Clemson Interest
By Phil Kornblut

DE Larry Ford (6-3 240) of Coffeyville JC, KS and Georgetown remains on the watch list with USC and Clemson. He said the Gamecocks plan to scout him at his first or second game and then go from there with a decision on a commitable offer. He also heard from Clemson over the summer. Ford visited USC and Oklahoma earlier in the summer. He said his top five is USC, Clemson, Purdue, Kansas State and Mississippi State. He has offers in writing from Texas A&M and Iowa State and verbal offers from USC, Clemson, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Purdue, Kansas State and Kansas.

[Wynnco.com]

August 09, 2007
USC, Clemson In Harris's Final Group
By Phil Kornblut

LB Jerrell Harris (6-4 215) of Gadsden, AL has reduced his long list of suitors to eleven with USC and Clemson both making the cut. Harris said he also is considering Southern Cal, Florida, Florida State, Tennessee, Auburn, Alabama, Georgia, Georgia Tech and LSU. Harris said his interest in the Palmetto State schools is real. "I like both of them," he said. "I like both of their defenses and could see myself playing for them." Over the summer Harris visited Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Auburn, Alabama and Tennessee. He does not have any favorites and doesn't plan to announce a decision until Signing Day.

[Wynnco.com]

August 09, 2007
Page Watches USC Again
By Phil Kornblut

For the second time this week, AC Flora OL Kenneth Page (6-3 290) attended USC's practice Thursday night. He also was on hand Tuesday night. "I just got a better feel (about USC)," Page said. "I got to see the coaches in action, how practice goes and how the players get along. I got a good impression. Good practices. Great coaching." Page has cut his list of 37 offers down to 10 and said he will release the list Monday. He did say USC and Clemson made the final ten. He has not visited Clemson this summer but plans to go up for a couple of games this season. He said there is not a favorite.

[Wynnco.com]

August 10, 2007
USC Maintaining Contact With Bailey
By Phil Kornblut

USC has remained in steady contact with OL Preston Bailey (6-5 315) of Nashville while he says he's not hearing from Clemson at this point. "I texted a lot with coach Spurrier Jr. during the summer and I'm getting mail from them," Bailey said of the Gamecocks' contact. "I'm looking to add more offers to have more schools to consider. I'm just taking my time. I want to take a few more visits going into the season like Louisville and Alabama." Bailey hasoffers from USC, Clemson, Michigan, Georgia Tech, Miami, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Middle Tennessee State and Ole Miss. He has not formulated a favorites list.

[Wynnco.com]

August 10, 2007
Loftley Says 3 Stick Out
By Matt Long

DL Taylor Loftley (6-2 258) of Chamblee, GA named seven schools that have given him a scholarship offer. Duke, Stanford, Louisville, USC, Vanderbilt, Middle Tennessee St, and UAB have all offered, but Loftley said that three stick out the most to him. "Duke, Vanderbilt, and South Carolina. They showed the most attention," he said, "Duke, I like how they're recruiting better players now than they had been...I like that Vanderbilt's trying to compete in the SEC and I'd have an oppurtunity to play there.." He said that he was also interested in USC, "I just love that they have a great fan base," Loftley said, "They have a lot of fans that really support them, and I love their coaches, too." Loftley has visited Duke and Vanderbilt, and attended a camp at Georgia Tech. He said that he will wait to take an official visit to South Carolina, but does not know which weekend. He said that he wants to make visits to all his favorites before he makes his decision. "I hoped to reach it before the season," Loftley said, "But now I just hope to do it as soon as possible." DB Coach Ron Cooper is recruiting Loftley for the Gamecocks.

[lacene]

August 09, 2007
Page Watches USC Again
By Phil Kornblut

For the second time this week, AC Flora OL Kenneth Page (6-3 290) attended USC's practice Thursday night. He also was on hand Tuesday night. "I just got a better feel (about USC)," Page said. "I got to see the coaches in action, how practice goes and how the players get along. I got a good impression. Good practices. Great coaching." Page has cut his list of 37 offers down to 10 and said he will release the list Monday. He did say USC and Clemson made the final ten. He has not visited Clemson this summer but plans to go up for a couple of games this season. He said there is not a favorite.

Sounds good, that he would visit us twice in one week....where does Page rank as an OL??

[lacene]

August 10, 2007
USC Maintaining Contact With Bailey
By Phil Kornblut

USC has remained in steady contact with OL Preston Bailey (6-5 315) of Nashville while he says he's not hearing from Clemson at this point. "I texted a lot with coach Spurrier Jr. during the summer and I'm getting mail from them," Bailey said of the Gamecocks' contact. "I'm looking to add more offers to have more schools to consider. I'm just taking my time. I want to take a few more visits going into the season like Louisville and Alabama." Bailey hasoffers from USC, Clemson, Michigan, Georgia Tech, Miami, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Middle Tennessee State and Ole Miss. He has not formulated a favorites list.

Bailey would be a great pick-up for USC. I think he's the 15th OL-man in the nation, and a 4* (Rivals.com).

[Wynnco.com]

Bailey would be a great pick-up for USC. I think he's the 15th OL-man in the nation, and a 4* (Rivals.com).

I would think that we would love to get both of those guys. Here's to it!!

[Wynnco.com]

August 11, 2007
Page Takes In USC Scrimmage
By Phil Kornblut

AC Flora OL Kenneth Page (6-3 290) was among a small number of prospects on the sideline Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium to watch the first public scrimmage of the pre-season by USC. Page also watched the Gamecocks practice on Tuesday and Thursday. Page plans to announce a list of his final ten school Monday. He has said USC and Clemson will be on the list. Also on hand for the scrimmage were Gamecock commitment ATH Jay Spearman of Greenwood and junior DE Justice Cunningham (6-3 220) of Central.

[Wynnco.com]

August 12, 2007
Senior Season Key For Enos
By Phil Kornblut

DE Chris Enos (6-4 250) of Hope Mills, NC made the summer camp rounds including a stop at USC. He impressed the coaches at every stop but not enough to earn an offer. Enos missed nearly half of last season with an ankle injury and recruiters want him to prove himself all over again. "The colleges want to see if my ankle is 100 percent in the early games," he said. "They want to see film of early games." Enos has been hearing from USC, Wake Forest, NC State, North Carolina, Virginia Tech and Tennessee. He hopes to take in games at USC, Tennessee, North Carolina, NC State and Wake Forest.

[Wynnco.com]

August 12, 2007
USC Looking Good With Tennessee Receiver
By Phil Kornblut

WR Rodriquez Wilks (6-1 200) of Smyrna, TN caught 61 passes for 943 yards and 16 touchdowns and he's attracting a large amount of interest. He has about 15 offers including USC, Tennessee, Florida, Michigan, Louisville, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Ole Miss and Mississippi State. Wilks made no visits over the summer and said he has no favorite. But he's very interested in the Gamecocks. "Coach Spurrier Jr. and coach Spurrier, I like them, they're nice guys," Wilks said. "South Carolina is a great school, and they throw the ball. They stand real good with me." Wilks said he will take all five of his official visits before deciding, and he's undecided on those visits.

[Wynnco.com]

August 13, 2007
Page Names A Final Ten
By Phil Kornblut

OL Kenneth Page (6-3 290) of AC Flora Monday cut his list of nearly 40 offers to a final ten. And two of his official visits from that group will be Notre Dame and Stanford. "All of them did have something that stuck out with me that I liked," Page said. "They either had the academics or the coaching." Following are Page's final ten choices with his comment about each:
USC..."It's hometown, I grew up there. I like what Steve Spurrier has done with them the last couple of years. They are in a new direction."
Clemson..."I have a good relationship with coach Scott. It's a great school with good academics and a well rounded team."
Notre Dame..."Charlie Weis is a great coach. They have good tradition and I like the academics."
Georgia Tech..."I like the networking I can get with them being in Atlanta. That will help me with my career after football."
Maryland..."They have a beautiful campus and I like coach Friedgen."
North Carolina..."It's a brand new coaching staff and Butch Davis has a history for what he did in Miami and I think he's going to do the same at North Carolina. And they have a great business school, too."
Tennessee..."I like the stability with their coaching staff and their tradition. It's a beautiful area and a beautiful campus."
Alabama..."It's a beautiful campus and Nick Saban will do great things with that program."
Florida..."They are the national champions. They have a great coaching staff all around. And my brother lives in Florida."
Stanford..."Great academics, comparable to Ivy League schools."
Page said there is no favorite and he has no timetable for a decision. "It will be when I feel most comfortable with the school I decide to go to," he said. "I can't put a time limit on that."

[pc72687]

Sorry guys, I'm way behind after a whole summer at Basic Training and AIT. Can someone give me a quick summary please?

[Wynnco.com]

August 14, 2007
USC Offers Kentucky Wideout
By Matt Long

WR Daniel Moore (6-5 188) of Bowling Green, KY has quietly accumulated offers from several major schools in the Southeast and Midwest. Moore, who goes by the nickname "D.L.", currently holds offers from USC, Nebraska, Purdue, Kentucky, Cincinnati, Middle Tennessee St, and Ohio. He has also heard from Tennessee and Louisville. He visited South Carolina earlier this summer for a camp in Columbia. According to his coach Kevin Wallace, Moore really enjoyed the camp and USC is now among his top three favorites, along with Purdue and Nebraska. Moore also went to camps at Tennessee and Louisville. He plans to go back to USC in the fall, "He talked to Coach (John) Hunt last week about setting up an official visit to South Carolina," Wallace said, "If everything works out, he'll be there for South carolina's opener." He also plans to take officials to Nebraska and Purdue.

[Wynnco.com]

August 14, 2007
Florida Linebacker Drawing USC Interest
By Phil Kornblut

USC continues to shop the Jacksonville, FL area for talent and LB Gary Tinsley (6-0 215) is one their watch list. "I'm getting handwritten mail from them and they are telling me they are waiting to see me play this season and they'll be up to visit," Tinsley said. "They are telling me I can come in and see one of their games." Tinsley has offers from Minnesota and Arkansas. He's also hearing from Middle Tennessee State, Ole Miss, South Florida and Illinois. He favors his two offers. "Minnesota is showing a lot of interest," he said. Last season Tinsley had 96 tackles and 17 sacks. He is a teammate of USC commitment LB Shaq Wilson.

[Wynnco.com]

August 15, 2007
USC Pursuing Kentucky TE
By Matt Long

TE Ryan Wallace (6-6 230) of Bowling Green, KY has 10 offers, including schools such as Stanford, Ole Miss, Purdue, Kentucky, Cincinnati, Oklahoma State, Western Kentucky, Ohio, and Eastern Kentucky. He is also hearing from USC, Tennessee, Georgia Tech, and Wake Forest. Wallace attended a camp at USC earlier this summer with his teammate D.L. Moore. "He really enjoyed his visit to South Carolina," said his head coach Kevin Wallace, who is also Ryan's father. The younger Wallace also went to camps at Kentucky and Oklahoma State, and attended a NIKE Combine at West Lafayette, Indiana. He has already set official visits to Stanford and Ole Miss. Coach Wallace said that he expects his son will visit Kenutcky, as well. However, Wallace has not yet decided where his last two officials will be. "I think his decision to wait is probably predicated on the fact that three schools are waiting to see how he plays his senior year." The three waiting for film of his senior season are South Carolina, Wake Forest, and Georgia Tech. Coach Wallace said that his son would probably take an official visit to South Carolina if the Gamecocks offered him.

[Wynnco.com]

August 16, 2007
Commings Planning To See USC Saturday
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Sanders Commings Jr. (6-2 195) of Augusta is planning to attend USC's scrimmage Saturday afternoon at Williams-Brice Stadium. Commings earlier took in a practice at Georgia. He does not have a favorite but is planning a decision in the next couple of weeks. He has offers from USC, Georgia, Auburn and Maryland while Tennessee, Florida and Georgia Tech also are interested. Commings said USC, Maryland and Auburn are recruiting him for receiver and defensive back while Georgia likes him strictly as a safety. He said he had no preference on a position. Commings said he received an e-mail from USC recruiter John Hunt Monday informing him of the scrimmage. Commings said he was 90% sure he would make it for the scrimmage. Commings also is a baseball prospect and wants to play both sports in college. He plans to talk with Gamecock baseball coach Ray Tanner while in Columbia Saturday.

[Wynnco.com]

August 16, 2007
Whitlock To Watch Klimp Sin Saturday
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Charles Whitlock (5-11 175) of Chester plans to be at Clemson Saturday to watch the Tigers' scrimmage according to his coach Victor Floyd. Whitlock, who has cut his list to Clemson, USC, Alabama, Florida, Auburn, Kentucky and North Carolina, has scheduled his first official visit with Alabama for September 21st. He's undecided on his other official visits. Floyd said Whitlock has not indicated a favorite to him. "He'll probably base his decision on his official visits because he didn't get out as much as he had planned this summer," Floyd said. "He grew up a Carolina fan but it's probably even between the two (USC and Clemson). Coach Spurrier likes him as a receiver. The things he does with the ball, you can't coach that. Spurrier said he reminds him a lot of those guys he had at Florida. Clemson likes him as a corner and a return guy." Floyd doesn't anticipate a decision from Whitlock until shortly after the season. "We're going to let him put it on the back burner until after the season," Floyd said. Whitlock hyperextended a knee in last week's scrimmage against Byrnes and Floyd said he will will not play him in next week's season opener against Lewisville.

[Wynnco.com]

August 16, 2007
Bell Headed To The SEC
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Ingram Bell (6-0 187) of St. James committed Thursday to Vanderbilt. Bell also had offers from Duke and Presbyterian and drew interest from USC, Georgia, Maryland, Georgia Tech and Ole Miss. Bell has excellent speed and can play running back, receiver or corner. He totaled nearly 1200 yards on offense last season.

[lacene]

USC Grabs Big Commitment

by Tony Morrell

http://vmedia.rivals.com/IMAGES/PROSPECT/PHOTO/KENNYDAVIS3_21200.JPG

Newberry (S.C.) three-star defensive lineman Kenny Davis, who has offers on the table from South Carolina, Clemson, Virginia Tech and North Carolina, ended the process today by making his verbal commitment to the South Carolina Gamecocks.

[Wynnco.com]

August 17, 2007
Coples Not Thinking Recruiting
By Phil Kornblut

DE Quinton Coples (6-7 242) of Kinston, NC has a new home. He has enrolled at Hargrave Prep, VA and will play his senior season of football on the post graduate team there. Coples said he hasn't done much with his recruiting. He has 32 offers but won't cut the list until October or November. He said he has no favorites at this point. Clemson and USC are among his offers and he has more interest in the Tigers than the Gamecocks. "Clemson has recruited me pretty hard," he said. "I was hearing from them about every day." Some of his other offers are Florida, North Carolina, NC State, Alabama, Tennessee, Virginia Tech and Southern Cal.

[Wynnco.com]

August 17, 2007
Freeman Sets First Visit
By Phil Kornblut

OL Dalton Freeman (6-6 265) of Pelion has not narrowed his list from a large group of offers, but he has set his first official visit. Freeman will visit Penn State September 8th his father and coach Ben said Friday night. Coach Freeman said his son will try to reduce his list by the end of the month. USC and Clemson remain strongly involved and coach Freeman said his son has positive feelings about line coaches John Hunt of USC and Brad Scott of Clemson. Some of Freeman's other offers are Tennessee, NC State, Wake Forest, Maryland, Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, Georgia and Florida.

[Wynnco.com]

August 18, 2007
Davis Commits To USC
By JC Shurburtt of TheBigSpur.com

The USC Gamecocks picked up their sixth verbal commitment for the Class of 2008 and fifth from the Palmetto State as Newberry defensive tackle Kenny Davis pulled the trigger for Carolina earlier today. "I committed to USC, to South Carolina," Davis said. "I've played against several of USC's players when I was in high school and I've talked to people that go there. I've also looked at Clemson, Virginia Tech and North Carolina and I just felt more at home at USC than anywhere else." The 6-foot-4, 295-pounder was recruited by Gamecocks defensive line coach Brad Lawing. "I was talking to my coaches here at Newberry and they told me that coach Lawing was a great coach," Davis said. "Other people have gone to USC from Newberry and gotten great coaching from coach Lawing, from when he was at USC before." Prior to joining Steve Spurrier's staff last season, Lawing was the defensive line coach at South Carolina from 1989-98 under coaches Sparky Woods and Brad Scott. Spurrier also was a big reason for Davis' decision. "Coach Spurrier really was the difference," Davis said. "I just wanted to be coached by a great football coach." Davis joins Aynor offensive guard T.J. Johnson, Summerville quarterback Reid McCollum, Greenwood athlete Jay Spearman and Georgia Military College defensive end and North Charleston High alum Jariel King as the Palmetto State products in this class. Jacksonville (Fla.) First Coast linebacker Shaq Wilson was Carolina's first verbal commitment for 2008. Davis says this is his final decision. "I believe I am just about done," Davis said. "Carolina is a great place."

[Wynnco.com]

August 18, 2007
Spearman Sparked Davis Commitment
By Phil Kornblut

Newberry DL Kenny Davis (6-5 290) committed to USC Saturday sooner than he earlier had projected for his decision. Davis and the Bulldogs played Greenwood in a jamboree Friday night and afterwards he talked at length with Gamecock commitment Jay Spearman of the Eagles. "After playing the game last night I got to know Jay Spearman and talked with him a little bit more," Spearman said. "After last night I just felt like I was ready to commit. I talked to my parents about it and they were okay with it, so I went ahead and committed. It was just time. I went there (two weeks ago) and felt at home. I got to know all the players and coaches and it felt like home. I felt I could play my best there and get my education." Davis said he was impressed by what he viewed as new emphasis USC is placing on defense. "I like that they are starting to bring in younger players on the line," he said. "They have usually been an offensive team but they've built up their defense more. (Defensive line) Coach Lawing is a great guy and coach Spurrier is a great guy. They are both outgoing. Everything I hear is they are great coaches." Davis is regarded as one of the state's top defensive line prospects. Newberry coach Sam Baird believes Davis has all the attributes to be a top flight SEC defensive lineman. "He's athletic for his size," Baird said. "He has good hands and good feet. He also plays tight end. He runs well for his size and explodes off the line." Davis also considered offers from Clemson, North Carolina and Virginia Tech. He also drew interest from Georgia, Tennessee, Virginia and Georgia Southern. He said his commitment to the Gamecocks is his final decision. Davis becomes the ninth commitment for the 2008 Gamecock class, the fourth from South Carolina.

[lacene]

Davis becomes the ninth commitment for the 2008 Gamecock class, the fourth from South Carolina.

I count it as a total of 6 commitments, including Davis. Who's the others??

btw, our defensive front is going to be sick for the next 3-5 years. Expect Davis to move up to a 4* before February.....

[Neo]

USC Committments:

NR = Not Ranked
NE = Not Evaluated

Class Ranking: 45

#31 3-Star DT Kenny Davis
Ht: 6-foot-4
Wt: 295 lbs
Forty: 4.9 secs
Bench max: 350 pounds
Squat max: 430 pounds
GPA: 3.0
SAT: 890
Class: 2008 (High School)

NR 3-Star OL TJ Johnson
Ht: 6-foot-4
Wt: 285 lbs
Forty: 5.2 secs
Bench max: 325 pounds
Squat max: 450 pounds
GPA: 3.82
Class: 2008 (High School)

#12 3-Star QB Reid McCollum
Ht: 6-foot-4
Wt: 195 lbs
Forty: 4.73 secs
Bench max: 250 pounds
Vertical: 29 inches
Class: 2008 (High School)

#47 3-Star ATH Jay Spearman
Ht: 6-foot-0
Wt: 187 lbs
Forty: 4.4 secs
Bench max: 280 pounds
Squat max: 405 pounds
GPA: 3.9
Class: 2008 (High School)

#27 3-Star LB Shaq Wilson
Ht: 6-foot-0
Wt: 210 lbs
Forty: 4.59 secs
Class: 2008 (High School)

NR/NE DE Jarriel King (JUCO)
Ht: 6-foot-7
Wt: 285 lbs
Forty: 4.8 secs
Bench max: 340 pounds
Class: 2008 (Junior College - Dec Grad)

[lacene]

I count it as a total of 6 commitments, including Davis. Who's the others??

btw, our defensive front is going to be sick for the next 3-5 years. Expect Davis to move up to a 4* before February.....

to answer my own question, I guess their looking at the 2007 recruits that did not make the grade into USC, and are going to prep school. I guess they still factor in as commitments to us, even though USC is allowed to offer their scholly's to someone else, and even though they can commit elsewhere....

Eric Baker
Akeem Auguste
Antonio Allen

I guess??

[pc72687]

I have heard that Baker still wants to be a gamecock and is going to a prep school.

[Wynnco.com]

August 19, 2007
USC A Finalist For Top Receiver
By Phil Kornblut

USC is one of the five finalists with WR T.J. Lawrence (6-2 190) of Lakeland, FL. "I've narrowed it down to South Carolina, Florida, Florida State, Virginia Tech and LSU," Lawrence said after cutting his list from over 20 offers. "South Carolina and Florida are the top two. Florida, they are the national champions and they have an awesome program. And South Carolina likes to pass the ball, and me being a receivers, that's attractive to me. There's no leader between them but South Carolina is recruiting me the hardest." Lawrence has not set his official visits and he plans to take all of them before he makes a decision. He wants to make his decision around mid season or near the end of the season. Last season Lawrence had 52 catches for 1245 yards and 15 touchdowns.

[Wynnco.com]

August 19, 2007
Womble Set On Four Visits
By Phil Kornblut

RB Jamal Womble (5-11 221) of Sierra Vista, AZ has three official visit dates set and has decided on a fourth trip. Womble is set to see Nebraska September 14th, Wisconsin Novmeber 9th and USC November 23rd. He also will set an official visit date with North Carolina. He's not sure on his fifth visit. The other schools he's considering are Maryland, Oregon State, Arizona State, Illinois and Purdue. "Recruiting has died down, it's not as hectic as it was," Womble said. "Me and coach Gillespie (USC), we e-mail each other about every other day. He tells me about how camp is going and how practice is going." Womble said the Gamecocks remain interested in his teammate, WR/FS Jake Muasau (6-1 215). "They like his highlight tape but they are waiting on game film," Womble said.

[Wynnco.com]

August 19, 2007
Quinn Takes Another Look At UNC
By Phil Kornblut

LB Robert Quinn (6-6 255) of Fort Dorchester made an unofficial visit to North Carolina Saturday, and it wasn't his first visit to Chapel Hill. "It was nice, I'd been up there before," Quinn said. "I watched them scrimmage a little bit and talked to the coaches a good bit. I plan to narrow down my list soon. That was the last trip I'm taking. I'll discuss all the schools with my dad and cut it down from there." Quinn has offers from USC, Clemson, North Carolina, Virginia Tech, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Virginia, Auburn, Maryland, Louisville, Florida State, Rutgers and NC State. He has not decided on official visits and will go to some games of the schools on his final list.

[Wynnco.com]

August 20, 2007
Taylor Narrows His List
By Phil Kornblut

DE Devin Taylor (6-6 215) of Beaufort has narrowed his list to USC, Duke, Virginia Tec, Wake Forest, The Citadel and Presbyterian and he said he will set official visits with USC, Virginia Tech, Duke and Wake Forest. He does not have a favorite. Taylor said USC, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and Presbyterian are recruiting him the hardest. He does not plan a decision until after his season and after his visits.

[Wynnco.com]

August 21, 2007
Chambers Sets First Visit
By Phil Kornblut

WR O'Neil Chambers (6-3 205) of St. Cloud, FL has set his first official visit for Purdue September 21st. He is not sure on his other official visits though he knows he won't take any to Florida schools. He also has offers from USC, Maryland, BYU, Georgia, Georgia Southern, Texas Tech, Houston, Texas A&M, Mississippi State and Troy. He's also getting interest from Miami, South Florida and Florida. Chambers said he's waiting on an offer from Miami. He last heard from USC at the end of the texting period.

[Wynnco.com]

August 21, 2007
Byrnes Corner Drawing USC Interest
By Phil Kornblut

DB Cartier Rice (5-11 177) of Byrnes is expected to be scouted by USC this fall. "I talked with coach Lawing in late May and he said they were going to start recruiting me," Rice said. Rice has an offer from Michigan State and plans to set an official visit with the Spartans. "I'm very interested in them," he said. "I like the academics and the program. And they seem interested in me." Rice is also hearing from Georgia, Auburn, Marshall and Louisville. Last season Rice had 40 tackles with 3 interceptions and 8 break ups.

[Wynnco.com]

August 21, 2007
Lewis Looking At USC For Visit
By Phil Kornblut

DB Carlton Lewis (6-3 190) of St. Augustine, FL plans to set one of his official visits with USC. He also plans to set up dates with Georgia Tech and Illinois. Those three have offered along with Wake Forest, Indiana, Marshall, Western Kentucky, South Florida, Buffalo and Presbyterian. Lewis said Clemson and Florida also are showing interest. Right now his top four are USC, South Florida, Wake Forest and Georgia Tech with no leader.

[Wynnco.com]

August 21, 2007
Tennessee Receiver To Visit USC
By Phil Kornblut

WR Demario Williams (6-4 180) of Columbia, TN plans to set an official visit with USC this fall. The Gamecocks are one of his offers along with Ole Miss and Troy. He also is hearing from Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Middle Tennessee State and Alabama. Williams also is a basketball prospect with offers from Wofford, Middle Tennessee, Dayton and Austin Peay. He does not plan to play both sports in college and is not sure which one he will choose. Williams said he last heard from his USC recruiter, Steve Spurrier Jr,, at the end of last month. "He said they are very interested in me and if I want to catch the ball, South Carolina is the place to go," Williams said. Williams camped this summer at Tennessee, Auburn and Vanderbilt. He also plans to set an official visit with Ole Miss. His three offers are his favorites but there is no leader among them. Williams could not recall his football stats, but in basketball he averaged 19 points, 8 assists and 5 rebounds per game.

[Wynnco.com]

August 22, 2007
USC Strong With Big Lineman
By Phil Kornblut

USC appears to be one of the two favorites with OL B.J. Brand (6-4 331) of Douglas, GA. "It's just my guess, but I think USC and Georgia are his top two," said Coffee County coach Jerry Odom, a former assistant of Steve Spurrier's at Florida and with the Redskins. "He has a good relationship with coach Hunt. He thinks a lot of him." Brand camped at USC this summer. He also has offers from Florida and Florida State. He will visit all of his favorites. Brand actually committed to Georgia earlier in the year but later backed off that.

[Wynnco.com]

August 22, 2007
USC Keeping Up Interest In Colston
By Phil Kornblut

RB Terrell Colston (5-10 185) of Lakeland, FL received regular text messages from USC until the ban went into affect the end of July. He received a text from recruiter Steve Spurrier Jr. on the final day. "He wished me good luck and said they expected me to come up on a visit," Colston said. He remains interested in the Gamecocks though they have not offered. Colston has offers from Purdue, Michigan State, Troy, Southern Miss and Western Kentucky. He also plays slot receiver.

[waldo]

Who are the 4 guys that have been Suspened for the 1st game?

[lacene]

Who are the 4 guys that have been Suspened for the 1st game?

I haven't heard anything about this...please explain?

edit: OK, now I've heard, lol. Apparently, Bobby Wallace, Chris Hail, Jordin Lindsey, and Blake Mitchell will be suspended for the first game for missing those classes back in summer school. The 4 players were already punished initially by being kept out of the first fall practices. I guess Spurrier felt that that wasn't severe enough, and I can't say that I disagree.

Especially with the issues over Jordan Lindsey having to file a petition to see if he will be academically eligible, and the delay over it. That threw a little monkey wrench into the practices, having to wait on a decision for him. It couldn't have made Spurrier and Nix too happy over it.

Also, I have tried to be a supporter for Mitchell because he seems to have the talent to be a solid SEC QB, but man he's as dense as a brick. Good thing both Smelley and Beecher have been playing well in scrimmage....Blake needs to worry about spending his senior year on the sideline....

edit #2 and this needs to be moved to the South Carolina thread.....

[Williams-Brice]

I haven't heard anything about Jordin. I'll look into it.

[pc72687]

Cook also had an emergency surgery to remove his apendix.

[Wynnco.com]

I haven't heard anything about this...please explain?

edit: OK, now I've heard, lol. Apparently, Bobby Wallace, Chris Hail, Jordin Lindsey, and Blake Mitchell will be suspended for the first game for missing those classes back in summer school. The 4 players were already punished initially by being kept out of the first fall practices. I guess Spurrier felt that that wasn't severe enough, and I can't say that I disagree.

Especially with the issues over Jordan Lindsey having to file a petition to see if he will be academically eligible, and the delay over it. That threw a little monkey wrench into the practices, having to wait on a decision for him. It couldn't have made Spurrier and Nix too happy over it.

Also, I have tried to be a supporter for Mitchell because he seems to have the talent to be a solid SEC QB, but man he's as dense as a brick. Good thing both Smelley and Beecher have been playing well in scrimmage....Blake needs to worry about spending his senior year on the sideline....

edit #2 and this needs to be moved to the South Carolina thread.....

As I understand it the one game suspension doesn't have anything to do with coach Spurrier. I believe it is university policy. Might be wrong. Maybe someone else knows for sure.

[Wynnco.com]

August 26, 2007
Commings Pays USC A Visit
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Sanders Commings Jr. (6-2 195) of Augusta made an unofficial visit to USC Saturday and met with his recruiter John Hunt and with defensive backs coach Ron Cooper. "It went pretty good," he said. "I didn't get to talk with coach Spurrier but I talked with coach Hunt and coach Cooper. It was just small talk about South Carolina's program and the academics, stuff like that." Commings plans to return to USC September 15th for the SC State game and tour the campus and meet with baseball coach Ray Tanner. Commings also is a baseball prospect and wants to play both sports in college. Commings also is considering Georgia, Florida, Georgia Tech, Auburn, Maryland and Wake Forest. He had hoped to make a decision before his season begins this Friday but now is not sure he can get it done by then. USC is recruiting him as a safety.

[Wynnco.com]

August 26, 2007
Lewis Ready To End Recruiting
By Phil Kornblut

The next in state prospect expected to make a commitment is OL Justin Lewis (6-5 315) of Johnsonville. "I want to make a commitment real soon, in the next week or so," Lewis said. "I'm leaning towards NC State and Maryland." Lewis said he will make an unofficial visit to NC State this weekend and there is a "good possiblity of a commitment." He's not hearing anything from USC while Clemson has been showing interest. "Clemson said they wanted to wait to see me play in person but I don't think I'm going to wait that long," Lewis said. Lewis also has offers from SC State, Buffalo and Brevard.

[Wynnco.com]

August 26, 2007
Munroe Plans USC Visit
By Phil Kornblut

LB Malcolm Munroe (6-3 215) of Miami has set three official visits beginning with this weekend at Auburn. He will visit Wisconsin September 28th and Georgia Tech November 23rd. He said he also will set official visits with USC and Louisville. And he is also still considering Clemson, Florida and Central Florida. Munroe talked with USC recruiter Robert Gillespie last weekend. Georgia Tech is his current favorite. "I like the location, the academics, the overal package," Munore said. "All the others are tied for second." He will make his decision after his season.

[Wynnco.com]

August 26, 2007
Sanders Ready For Klimp Sin Visit
By Phil Kornblut

OL Zebrie Sanders (6-6 273) of Clayton, OH will make his first official visit this weekend when he comes to Clemson for the Tigers' Labor Day night game against Florida State. Sanders has a game himself Sunday. Afterwards, he and his parents and to sisters will head for Clemson. "I want to see how big their atmosphere is one gameday," Sanders said. "I want to see how comfortable I am with the coaches on gameday. I'm also interested in the academics. I think they (Clemson) are going to do well and I'm going to enjoy it." Sanders also is scheduled to visit Florida September 14th and Georgia November 10th. He will also set a visit with UCLA. Michigan also is a factor but he won't take an official visit there because he's been to Ann Arbor seven times already and will take in several games this season. Sanders said USC, LSU and OKlahoma State are possible for his final official visit. His three favorites right now are Florida, Georgia and UCLA.

[lacene]

As I understand it the one game suspension doesn't have anything to do with coach Spurrier. I believe it is university policy. Might be wrong. Maybe someone else knows for sure.

yeah, it was university-mandated. At the time of my above post, the news was just breaking, so some details were a little fuzzy. Also, it turned out that Lindsey being included was wrong: it's just Mitchell, Haile, and Wallace. With Wallace out due to injury at the start of the season, his 1-game suspension may not take place until he's healed and returns to ready status.....

[Wynnco.com]

August 28, 2007
Three Georgia Prospects Close On Decisions
By Phil Kornblut

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, top Georgia prospects DL Brandon Thompson of Thomasville, OL Cordy Glenn of Riverdale and OL B.J. Brand of Douglas are all close to decisions which will impact either Clemson or USC. Thompson said he is down to Clemson, Georgia Tech and LSU and would have a decision by the end of the month. Glenn is down to USC, LSU, Maryland, Alabama, Georgia and Louisville and will have a decision next week. And Brand said he is leaning towards committing to USC over Georgia.

[Wynnco.com]

August 28, 2007
Bailey Ready To Announce
By Phil Kornblut

OL Preston Bailey (6-5 315) of Nashville plans to announce his college choice Wednesday at a news conference at his school. Bailey, who has offers from USC and Clemson, said he will choose either Tennessee or Michigan.

[Wynnco.com]

August 28, 2007
Commings To Trim His List
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Sanders Commings Jr. (6-2 195) of Augusta will play his first game of the season Friday, and he hopes to narrow his list of schools to a final four by then. Commings has offers from USC, Auburn, Georgia and Maryland. He is also drawing interest from Tennessee, Florida and Georgia Tech. Commings said he will attend Georgia's game games this weekend against Oklahoma State and next weekend against USC. He also plans to be at USC's home game against SC State September 15th. Commings made an unofficial visit to USC last Saturday.

[Wynnco.com]

August 28, 2007
Page To Take In Opening Games
By Phil Kornblut

OL Kenneth Page (6-3 290) of AC Flora has not set any more official visits besides his October 19th trip to Notre Dame, but he has decided on official visits to USC and Clemson for their opening games. Page will be at USC Saturday as the Gamecocks take on Louisiana Lafayette, and he will be at Clemson Monday night for the Tigers battle with Florida State. Page is expected to set up an official visit with Stanford. He is undecided about his other official visits from his other finalists...USC, Clemson, North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia Tech, Florida, Maryland and Tennessee.

[lacene]

I'm hearing that Jarriel King is no longer enrolled at Geo. Military Academy. The rumor is he was kicked out due to theft. It's nothing but rumor now...

[Wynnco.com]

August 29, 2007
King Booted From GMA
By Phil Kornblut

USC commitment DL Jarriel King (6-7 270) was dismissed last week from Georgia Military JC for a violation of team rules GMA coach Burt Williams confirmed Wednesday. King was in his second season at the Milledgeville, GA school. He is regarded as one of the top junior college prospects in the country for this season.

[Wynnco.com]

August 29, 2007
Salmon Still A Strong USC Lean
By Phil Kornblut

DL Randy Salmon (6-3 290) of Stockbridge, GA remains a strong lean to USC and plans to commit once he learns if he's been academically accepted by the school. "My transcript was sent in a few days ago and I'm waiting to hear back," Salmon said. "South Carolina is very strong. They've been with me since the beginning." Salmon plans to set official visits with USC, NC State, Florida and Louisiana Tech. He plans to attend the USC at Georgia game. His sister is a student at Georgia. Salmon's offers are USC, NC State, UAB, Troy, Southern Miss, Georgia Southern, Louisiana Tech and Ohio.

[Wynnco.com]

August 29, 2007
Loftley Plans To See USC
By Phil Kornblut

DL Taylor Loftley (6-2 255) of Chamblee, GA plans to set an official visit with USC. "I didn't get to visit them over the summer like I wanted to," Loftley said. "I'm most interested in South Carolina, Duke and Vanderbilt in no particular order. I hope to make a decision as soon as possible." Loftley said the interest from USC remains strong as he's receiving a lot of mail. He also has offers from Stanford, UAB, Tulane, Middle Tennessee State, Ohio and Central Florida. He's also getting interest from NC State. Last season Loftley totaled 99 tackles and 7 sacks.

[Wynnco.com]

August 29, 2007
USC, Clemson Pursuing Florida Lineman
By Phil Kornblut

USC and Clemson aren going hard after DL/OL Javonta Boyd (6-2 287) of St. Peterbursburg, FL. "Recruiting is going ok," Boyd said. "I am not committed to anybody and I am still pretty much wide open. I haven't made a decision about it. I would say that everybody is still in it. It's like my coach said, whatever school fits me best is the school I need to go to." Florida and Georgia also are major players with Boyd who called his Gamecock recruiter David Reaves earlier in the week. "South Carolina's coaches were just asking me what side of the ball I would like to play," Boyd said. "I told them I would play anywhere they wanted me to, as long as I am out there helping the team." Boyd has an off weekend September 29th and plans to take a visit that weekend either to USC or Georgia.

[Wynnco.com]

August 29, 2007
Brand In No Hurry To Commit
By Phil Kornblut

USC has jumped out to a comfortable lead with OL B.J. Brand (6-4 331) of Douglas, GA, but he does not plan to make a commitment in the near future. "I haven't done anything yet," Brand said Wednesday night. "I really haven't made my decision yet. South Carolina is who I'm focused on right now. I like the coaches. I really like coach Hunt. That's what really got me looking forward to going down there." Brand said USC's lead on Georgia is a five on a scale of one to ten. He also has offers from Florida, Florida State, Auburn and Coastal Carolina. Brand said he wants to take some official visits before deciding and wants to set visits with USC, Florida, Auburn and Coastal Carolina. A plus for the Gamecocks is the relationship between USC head coach Steve Spurrier and Brand's coach Jerry Odom. Odom served on Spurrier's staff at Florida and with the Redskins.

[Wynnco.com]

August 29, 2007
Georgia Lineman Has USC Offer
By Phil Kornblut

USC has offered OL Elliott Williams (6-5 270) of Woodstock, GA according to his father Elvis Williams. Williams also plays on the defensive line. He also has offers from NC State, Auurn and Marshall. He attended a one day this summer at Auburn. He has not scheduled any official visits and does not have favorites at this point according to his father.

[Wynnco.com]

August 30, 2007
Thomas Plans Official To USC
By Phil Kornblut

LB Jacoby Thomas (6-0 225) of Mobile, AL said one of his official visits this fall will be USC. He's not sure about his other visits. "I'm focusing on the season," he said. "I'm getting letters all the time from South Carolina but everybody is the same. I'm keeping my options open." Thomas also has offers from Purdue, Colorado, UAB, Alabama and Auburn. He also is hearing from Southern Miss.

[Wynnco.com]

August 30, 2007
Brown To Watch USC Saturday
By Phil Kornblut

WR Jaron Brown (6-3 190) of Cheraw plans to be at USC's season opener Saturday, and he would like to attend Clemson's game with Florida State Labor Day night, but with school the next day, that probably won't be possible. The Gamecocks and Tigers have offered Brown as have Tennessee, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Duke and West Virginia. He has a top five of USC, Clemson, West Virginia, Tennessee and Vanderbilt. He does not have a favorite. Brown, who also plays safety, said all the schools are recruiting him primarily as a receiver.

[Wynnco.com]

August 30, 2007
Former UT Commit Looking Hard At USC
By Phil Kornblut

USC is now a major player with RB Tauren Poole (5-10 200) of Toccoa, GA. Poole once was a Tennessee commitment but has backed off that pledge. "I'm trying to look for the best place for me," he said. "My commitment was early so I just want to look around. Tennessee is still in the running as one of my top schools. South Carolina and Tennessee are recruiting me the hardest. South Carolina is recruiting me extra hard and I like the fact they are showing me that they want me, and I'm interested in them." Poole said he's also interested in Clemson but hasn't been getting that hard of a push from the Tigers. He also is looking at Auburn, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt and Maryland. All have offered. He has not scheduled any official visits. Last season Poole rushed for 1925 yards and 24 touchdowns.

[lacene]

August 30, 2007
Former UT Commit Looking Hard At USC
By Phil Kornblut

USC is now a major player with RB Tauren Poole (5-10 200) of Toccoa, GA. Poole once was a Tennessee commitment but has backed off that pledge. "I'm trying to look for the best place for me," he said. "My commitment was early so I just want to look around. Tennessee is still in the running as one of my top schools. South Carolina and Tennessee are recruiting me the hardest. South Carolina is recruiting me extra hard and I like the fact they are showing me that they want me, and I'm interested in them." Poole said he's also interested in Clemson but hasn't been getting that hard of a push from the Tigers. He also is looking at Auburn, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt and Maryland. All have offered. He has not scheduled any official visits. Last season Poole rushed for 1925 yards and 24 touchdowns.

I wonder how we still stand with Jamal Womble? He was very impressed with us his last visit in mid-July....

[Wynnco.com]

I wonder how we still stand with Jamal Womble? He was very impressed with us his last visit in mid-July....

The last quote I read from him didn't make me feel too warm or fuzzy. That's all I remember about it.

[Wynnco.com]

September 02, 2007
Walker Planning To Watch USC & Klimp Sin
By Phil Kornblut

USC and Clemson aren't in the top five with WR Deion Walker (6-3 188) of Christchurch, VA right now, but he said he plans to visit both this season to watch games. Walker said his current top five are Penn State, NC State, Florida State, Nebraska and Notre Dame. He is scheduled for an official visit to Penn State this weekend. Walker also wants to Virginia Tech and Southern Cal before he makes his decision. Walker said he also still has interest in Nebraska, Michigan, Virginia, LSU and Florida.

[Wynnco.com]

September 02, 2007
Brown Close On First Offer
By Phil Kornblut

WR T.J. Brown (6-1 187) of Lovejoy, GA says Georgia Southern is close to offering him. Brown feels the offer could come within a week or so. Meantime, he continues to receive mail from USC. "Coach Nix said he is going to try to come see me and hopefully I can get an offer from them," Brown said. He is also hearing from Eastern Kentucky, Florida State, NC State and Arkansas.

[Wynnco.com]

September 02, 2007
Florida Athlete Giving USC A Shot
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Evan Landi (6-3 193) of Coral Springs, FL is very interested in USC and has the Gamecocks among his top three along with Wisconsin and South Florida. Landi said his Gamecock recruiter Robert Gillespie is keeping in regular contact. "He keeps up with me through E-mail," he said. "When I went up there, I really liked coach Spurrier and that he likes to throw the football. The facilities also are being upgraded because of coach Spurrier." Landi also has offers from Louisiana-Lafayette, Akron and Florida International and is hearing from North Carolina, Rutgers, Tennessee and Auburn. Landi plays quarterback but could be a receiver or on defense. He said he would prefer to play on offense in college.

[Wynnco.com]

September 02, 2007
Receiver Sets USC Visit
By Phil Kornblut

WR D.L. Moore (6-5 188) of Bowling Green, KY has scheduled an official visit with USC for Sepember 29th according to the Louisville Courier-Journal. Moore is scheduled to visit Colorado September 14th with his teammate, TE Ryan Wallace (6-6 230). USC has shown interest in Wallace but has not offered. Moore also has offers from Nebraska, Purdue, Cincinnati, Middle Tennessee State, Ohio and Kentucky. He is also hearing from Tennessee and Louisville. Moore said he is open regarding his decision and will make his visits before deciding.

[Wynnco.com]

September 04, 2007
Gary To Watch Gamecocks & Dogs
By Phil Kornblut

Greenwood DE Jordan Gary (6-2 250) plans to make an unofficial visit to Athens Saturday to watch Georgia battle USC. Those are two of the schools showing interest. Others are Georgia Tech, East Carolina and Illinois. Gary has an offer from Marshall. "The teams want to see some of my tape and evaluate me," Gary said. "Most of the interest has been coming from USC, Georgia, Georgia Tech and Illinois.

[Wynnco.com]

September 04, 2007
Whitlock Sets Three Officials
By Phil Kornblut

Chester DB Charles Whitlock (5-11 175) did not make to USC or Clemson over the holiday weekend but he has lined up three of his official visits. He goes to Alabama September 14th, USC November 9th and Florida November 23rd. He will set visit dates with Clemson and North Carolina in the next week or so. "The big thing is to get on campus and see games," said Chester coach Victor Floyd. "He's going to have to base his decision on the official visits." Whitock does not have a favorite among his final five according to his coach.

[Wynnco.com]

September 05, 2007
USC To Follow Junior Quarterback
By Phil Kornblut

USC has identified a quarterback in the class of 2009 they will recruit. The Gamecocks are eyeing Brett Mooring (6-4 220) of Vanceboro, NC according to his coach Clay Jordan. Mooring will camp at USC next summer. He camped at NC State and Wake Forest this summer. Last season Mooring passed for 2000 yards and 24 touchdowns.

[Wynnco.com]

September 05, 2007
Ward Thinking Hard About USC
By Phil Kornblut

RB Martin Ward (5-10 190) of Jonesboro, GA once was a Georgia commitment. But that pledge is a thing of the past with Ward who now has turned his sights on USC, Clemson and North Carolina. "I've been communicating with South Carolina a lot," Ward said. "I am probably going to go to a Carolina school." Ward said he's planning to visit USC September 15th or 29th. He also plans to pay a visit to North Carolina. Ward said Clemson had been recruiting him but he hasn't heard from the Tigers recently.

[Wynnco.com]

September 05, 2007
Simmons Says He'll Visit USC
By Phil Kornblut

DB Darrell Simmons (6-2 194) of College Park, GA is on the verge of setting the dates for his official visits, and he says those trips will be to USC, Miami, Alabama, Ohio State and Florida. Simmons said he's very interested in the Gamecocks. "I like the program," he said. "I have three former teammates that go there. And it's not that far from home. I talked with coach Cooper Saturday. He said he would love for me to come there and play for him." Simmons said he will be at the USC-Georgia game this weekend. He said he is also still considering Clemson and Tennessee. Right now Simmons is favoring Alabama and Miami.

[Wynnco.com]

September 05, 2007
Thompson Making First Visit This Weekend
By Phil Kornblut

DL Brandon Thompson (6-2 275) of Thomasville, GA will make his first official visit of the fall this weekend when he visits LSU for the Virginia Tech game. Thompson has not scheduled any other visits but he said he plans to do so with Clemson, Georgia Tech and USC. The Gamecocks have only recently garnered strong interest from Thompson. "I want to check them out," Thompson said. But Clemson and Georgia Tech are his two favorites with Clemson still his favorite. He was locked in on his television Monday night when the Tigers knocked off Florida State. "I liked the defense, how it was swarming," Thompson said. He was on the fastrack towards a commitment before his season, but Thompson said making that call has become tougher. "The schools I've always wanted to go to have come on at the end and that's made it more difficult," he said pointing out LSU and Florida as two of those. Thompson said he's also still interested in Florida State and Miami. Thompson said he has no idea now when he'll make his decision.

[Wynnco.com]

September 06, 2007
Thurmond Making Second Trip To Athens
By Phil Kornblut

WR Marcus Thurmond (6-2 165) of North Augusta plans to be in Athens for the second straight Saturday to watch the USC-Georgia game. Last Saturday Thurmond watched the Bulldogs defeat Oklahoma State. Thurmond has offers from Maryland, Middle Tennessee State and SC State. He's also drawing interest from USC, Georgia, Michigan State, Tennessee and others. "I had a great trip to Georgia last weekend," Thurmond said. "I got to talk with all the coaches, including coach Richt. He said they were very interested in me and that they need some 'speed guys' like me." Thurmond displayed his talents in the season opening win over North Augusta accounting for nearly 200 all purpose yards including a 36 yard touchdown reception.

[Wynnco.com]

September 06, 2007
Offer List Growing For Bonds
By Phil Kornblut

Junior DE Chris Bonds (6-4 265) of Richland Northeast is off to an excellent start after missing most of last season with a severe ankle sprain. And his offer list continues to expand. According to RNE coach Jay Frye, Bonds has offers from USC, Clemson, Miami, Auburn, Tennessee, Michigan and Florida. He is drawing strong interest from Notre Dame and Florida State. "Those offers are based on his freshman season and last spring," Frye said. "His junior film hasn't even gone out." Bonds could be the most heavily recruited player ever from a program that in recent years has sent players to USC, Notre Dame, Michigan and Kentucky.

[Wynnco.com]

September 06, 2007
Paulk Has One Offer
By Phil Kornblut

DB Leonard Paulk (5-11 185) of Richland Northeast has an offer from East Carolina. He is also getting interest from Furman, Wofford and SC State. Paulk plays cornerback for the Cavaliers and returns punts. He is the brother of USC linebacker Rodney Paulk.

[Wynnco.com]

September 06, 2007
Tennessee Defensive End Plans USC Visit
By Phil Kornblut

DE Michael McAdoo (6-7 218) of Antioch, TN has not set dates for his official visits, but he's decided on the five schools he will see. McAdoo plans to schedule trips with USC, North Carolina, Vanderbilt, Ole Miss and Tennessee. McAdoo talked with his Gamecock recruiter Steve Spurrier Jr. two days ago. "I don't know that much about South Carolina," McAdoo said. "After I take my official visits I should know who is out front." McAdoo will attend the Alabama-Vanderbilt game this weekend. He also has offers from Kentucky, Cincinnati, Memphis and Middle Tennessee State. McAdoo also plays tight end. He is also a basketball player and averaged 19 points and 12 rebounds per game last season.

[Wynnco.com]

September 06, 2007
USC Strong With Big Guard
By Phil Kornblut

USC is one of the five finalists with 6-5 Delwan Graham of Dunwoody, GA. Graham will make an official visit to USC September 14th. He will visit Ole Miss this weekend. He also has set official visits with Auburn, Cincinnati and LSU. "He's wide open," said Dunwoody coach Scott Braccio. "He's looking forward to his visits and his home visits. USC has worked him pretty hard. He'll make all of his visits and then decide." Graham averaged 18 points, 11 rebounds and 3 steals per game last season. "He's tough and active and he has a motor that never stops," Braccio said. "He's a very productive offensive player. He's a very good slasher to the basket and finishes well at the rim."

[Wynnco.com]

September 06, 2007
Georgia Safety To Visit USC
By Phil Kornblut

DB Nick Williams (6-3 210) of Bainbridge, GA has scheduled an official visit with USC for November 9th. But the Gamecocks currently are third on his list behind Georgia and Albama. Williams talked by phone with Gamecock head coach Steve Spurrier Wednesday night. "He just said they definitely like me," Williams said. Williams also plays quarterback and said Spurrier is the only head coach to express interest in him for that position. Williams also will set official visits with Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas and Louisville. He will be at the USC-Georgia game this weekend. Last season Williams passed for 1500 yards and 15 touchdowns. He did not play much defense as a junior.

[Wynnco.com]

September 09, 2007
Munroe Impressed By USC Effort
By Phil Kornblut

LB Malcolm Munroe (6-3 215) of Miami watched USC's win over Georgia Saturday night on television, and the Gamecocks' performance increased his interest in making an official visit. "I was impressed with South Carolina," he said. "I'm going to try to get in touch with coach Gillespie and set that up." Munroe has visited Auburn and will make an official visit to Georgia Tech September 28th. He will also set up visits with Wisconsin and Louisville. Munroe said he will go to Central Florida this coming weekend on an unofficial visit for their game with Texas. Georgia Tech has been his favorite.

[Wynnco.com]

September 09, 2007
Sanders Scratches Georgia Visit For Now
By Phil Kornblut

OL Zebrie Sanders (6-6 273) of Clayton, OH was forced to miss his scheduled official visit to Georgia over the weekend after his own game was postponed until Saturday night due to heavy weather. Sanders has reset that visit for November 2nd. He will visit Florida this coming weekend and plans to set a visit with UCLA. He's also looking at USC and LSU for visits. Sanders said his interest in the Gamecocks is increasing. He said he's talking regularly with Gamecock offensive line coach John Hunt.

[Wynnco.com]

September 10, 2007
Stratford Standout Has ACC Offer
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Asheton Jordan (6-2 205) of Stratford has an offer from North Carolina and is drawing interest from USC and NC State according to his coach. "North Carolina offered him in camp," Ray Stackley said. "He also camped at South Carolina and they liked him. You have to be willing to look at him as an athlete. I picture him as an outside linebacker. He's real young, just a 16 year old senior. He's going to end up being a big kid. He'll go thru a couple of more growth spurts." Jordan doesn't play defense for the Knights as Stackley likes to keep him on offense where he lines up at running back, H-back and receiver. "He's a very explosive player," the coach said. "He's a rugged type of kid. He carries his pads well and has very good game speed. He has a good burst." Jordan has not yet scheduled any visits.

[Wynnco.com]

September 10, 2007
Freeman Checks Out Penn State
By Phil Kornblut

OL Dalton Freeman (6-6 265) of Pelion made an unofficial visit to Penn State over the weekend. His father Ben, the head coach at Pelion, also made the trip. "We got back about 9:30 this morning," Freeman said Monday afternoon. "It was a good trip. It was an exciting ball gme, a great atmosphere to be in and be a part of. He was very impressed with what he saw. We ate lunch with coach Paterno yesterday and saw him after the game. All of that went well. He had met him this summer when he was up there on an unofficial visit." Freeman has not set any other official visits but his father said Florida and Florida State are two possible trips. "And he definitely will take a trip to Clemson," the coach said. "Georgia Tech has made a big push on him and he likes them. They scouted him Friday night. He went to the USC-Lousiana Lafayette game game and coach Spurrier spent a lot of time with him. He went to the Clemson-Florida State game and really enjoyed that, too. Both in state schools are in the mix and he's very much involved with both." The coach said his son hopes to narrow his list to eight or ten schools by the end of next week.

[Wynnco.com]

September 10, 2007
Bowens Contemplating USC Commitment
By Phil Kornblut

LB Reggie Bowens (6-2 218) of Garner, NC said Monday night there is an 80% chance he will commit to USC this Saturday when he makes an unofficial visit for the SC State game. "One of my former teammates (Chris Cullver) plays for the Gamecocks and he really tells me a lot about the school," Bowens said. "I really like their coaching staff. Coach Lawing contacts me weekly. He's a real cool coach. He's straight up with me. He tells me everything I need to know." Bowens said he has narrowed his list to USC, Clemson, North Carolina and East Carolina with the Gamecocks well in front of the pack. He has not scheduled any official visits and has not taken any other unofficial visits to see games.

[DELTOR]

Bowens would be a good commit. We need some good LBs for this class.

[Wynnco.com]

Bowens would be a good commit. We need some good LBs for this class.

We sure do. We're losing a bunch of them after this year.

[pc72687]

Yeah, I imagine linebacker and OL will be a big effort this year. Also we'll need two good RBs.

[Wynnco.com]

September 11, 2007
Brand Still Favoring USC
By Phil Kornblut

There's been one significant change in the recruiting status of OL B.J. Brand (6-4 331) of Douglas, GA. Where he was favoring USC over Georgia in the past, he's now favoring the Gamecocks over Auburn. Brand has not been to any games this season and has not scheduled any official visits. He said he is hearing from the Gamecocks weekly and will set an official visit with them. Brand, who just a few weeks ago appeared ready to make a commitment, said he's not close to making a final decision.

[Wynnco.com]

September 11, 2007
Salmon Watches USC & Dogs
By Phil Kornblut

DL Randy Salmon (6-3 290) of Stockbridge, GA attended the USC-Georgia game last weekend in Athens where his sister is a student. "I was caught between the two (teams) but I was happy with the outcome," said Salmon who has been favoring USC for several weeks. He's waiting to hear back from USC regarding his transcripts which have been sent to the school. He plans to make an unofficial visit to USC to see a game but hasn't picked a date. He also likes NC State and Florida and plans to make a visit to NC State. "I want to see what NC State looks like also," he said. Florida has not yet offered.

[lacene]

Yeah, I imagine linebacker and OL will be a big effort this year. Also we'll need two good RBs.

I believe Eric Baker is still looking to come to USC after prep school, and we are looking very hard at a number of RB's, including Womble...

[Wynnco.com]

September 12, 2007
Ford Set On Two Visits
By Phil Kornblut

DE Larry Ford (6-3 240) of Coffeyville JC, KS and Georgetown continues to draw heavy interest from major schools with Arizona the most recent to jump in with an offer. His others are USC, Clemson, Iowa State, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Purdue, Kansas State, Kansas and Texas A&M. He's also drawing interest from Oklahoma which is waiting to review film before offering. Ford has scheduled official visits to Iowa State and Kansas State for November. He's unsure of his other visits. He's still intersted in his home state schools though he says he's not heard from either recently. Ford said Kansas State has been very active in their recruiting. "Five different coaches from there have called me," he said." He does not have a favorite. In his first three games this season Ford has 18 tackles and 2 sacks.

[Wynnco.com]

September 12, 2007
Simmons Might Be At USC Saturday
By Phil Kornblut

DB Darrell Simmons (6-2 194) of College Park, GA has not scheduled his official visits as he's waiting on his approval from the NCAA Clearinghouse, but he might take an unofficial visit to USC Saturday for the SC State game. Simmons talked to Gamecock recruiter Ron Cooper Wednesday night and was invited in for the game. Simmons plans to scheduled his official visits with USC, Alabama, Miami, Ohio State and Florida. Miami and Alabama are his top two.

[Wynnco.com]

September 12, 2007
Interest In Dawkins Skyrocketing
By Phil Kornblut

Byrnes DE Everett Dawkins (6-3 235) has seen the offers from major schools roll in over the past few weeks. The list includes Wake Forest, Maryland, Virginia Tech, Illinois, Michigan State, Florida State, Tennessee, Florida International, Wisconsin and NC State. USC is also showing interest and Dawkins talked Wednesday night with Gamecock recruiter Brad Lawing. "He wanted to know if I had interest and I told him I did," Dawkins said. "I've got to send him a tape." Dawkins has not scheduled any official visits but right now he's looking at Florida State, NC State, Wake Forest, Tennessee and Virginia Tech, but he said that could change. Florida State is his current favorite. "I have a tight connection with the coaches," he said. "I went to a three day camp there and I just liked the atmosphere." Dawkins had 120 tackles and 3 sacks last season. He has 31 tackles in three games this season.

[Wynnco.com]

September 12, 2007
Quinn Facing Important Saturday
By Phil Kornblut

LB Robert Quinn (6-6 255) of Fort Dorchester has more important things on his mind right now than recruiting. Like taking the ACT for the first time this Saturday. Quinn has not yet narrowed his list or decided on official visits. "I've been lazy, I don't feel like doing it," Quinn said about the task of eliminating some schools. "I've got the ACT this weekend and I guess I'll think about official visits after that. I just want to get the test out of the way." Quinn attended USC's home game against Louisiana-Lafayette and he said he might come in for Saturday's game against SC State. Quinn said he hears from USC and Clemson about every week. He said all of the schools which have offered are recruiting him about the same and he does not have a favorite.

[Wynnco.com]

September 12, 2007
One Visit Down For Thompson
By Phil Kornblut

DL Brandon Thompson (6-2 275) of Thomasville, GA made an official visit to LSU over the weekend, his first official visit. "It went well," Thompson said. "I liked the school, the location, the stadium." Thompson said he has not scheduled any other official visits but plans to do so with Clemson, USC and Georgia Tech. He had thought about visiting USC this weekend but said the trip never came together. Thompson said his top three, in order, are Clemson, Georgia Tech and LSU.

[Wynnco.com]

September 13, 2007
No Visit For Womble This Weekend
By Phil Kornblut

RB Jamal Womble (5-11 221) of Sierra Vista, CA was scheduled to visit Nebraska this weekend but has postponed that trip for a weekend to be determined. Womble visited Boston College last weekend and is scheduled for official visits to North Carolina October 5th, Wisconsin November 9th and USC November 23rd. Womble said he talked with USC recruiter Robert Gillespie last week. "I'm still very high on them," he said of the Gamecocks. He will not make a decision until after his visits. Last week Womble rushed for 250 yards on 15 carries and 1 touchdown.

[Wynnco.com]

September 13, 2007
Thurmond To Be At USC Saturday
By Phil Kornblut

WR Marcus Thurmond (6-2 175) of North Augusta will make an unofficial visit to USC Saturday for the SC State game. Thurmond watched the Gamecocks beat Georgia last Saturday night in Athens. "That was one of the best atmospheres I've ever seen in college football," Thurmond said. "Those South Carolina fans, they were really loud at the end when the game was over. It was an exciting game to see." Thurmond said Georgia recruiter John Eason plans to scout him this season. Thurmond has offers from Maryland, Middle Tennessee State and SC State.

[Wynnco.com]

September 13, 2007
Washington Out Indefinitely
By Phil Kornblut

Richland Northeast LB Chaz Washington (6-3 197) will be out indefinitely after breaking the middle toe on his left foot in last week's game. Washington has not been offered. He talked with Tennessee recruiter Dan Brooks Thursday night. He has also been hearing from USC, Clemson, Middle Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech and North Carolina. He has been to games at USC and Clemson and plans to attend the USC-SC State Saturday night.

[Wynnco.com]

September 13, 2007
Harris Not Rushing Recruiting
By Phil Kornblut

Recruiting is not a major priority right now with LB Jerrell Harris (6-4 215) of Gadsden, AL. "I'm not focusing on that," Harris said. "I'm focusing my season and my school work. I won't take any official visits until after the season." Harris has taken unofficial visits for games at Auburn and Clemson. He also is looking at USC, Southern Cal, Alabama, Tennessee, LSU and Florida. Harris said he's hearing regularly from his favorites.

[Wynnco.com]

September 13, 2007
Commings To Makes Second USC Visit
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Sanders Commings Jr. (6-2 195) of Augusta will make an unofficial visit to USC with his parents for Saturday night's game against South Carolina State. This will be his second unofficial visit to USC. He's been to Georgia for both of the Bulldogs' home games. He has not set official visits but plans to with his favorites...USC, Georgia, Florida, Georgia Tech and Maryland. He does not have a leader. "I want to make some more visits," Commings said. "I don't want to regret anything in the end."

[Wynnco.com]

September 16, 2007
USC Among Fortson's Favorites
By Phil Kornblut

WR Jarmon Fortson (6-3 220) of Columbus, GA has not decided on any official visits but said he is focusing on USC, Auburn, Alabama, LSU and Louisville. Fortson said he has serious interest in the Gamecocks. "The like to pass the ball and that's what I'm looking for," Fortson said. He talked with USC recruiter Ty Nix earlier this month. He has been to a game at Auburn. He does not have a favorite. Last season Fortson caught 35 passes for 700 yards.

[Wynnco.com]

September 16, 2007
Bowens Forced To Reschedule USC Visit
By Phil Kornblut

LB Reggie Bowens (6-2 218) of Garner, NC was not able to make an unofficial visit to USC this past Saturday because his own game was postponed from Friday night and played on Saturday. Bowens said he will now try to make an unofficial visit to USC for the Mississippi State game. Bowens is a strong lean to USC saying previously he was 80% certain of a commitment. He said nothing has changed with that position. Bowens also has offers from Clemson, North Carolina, East Carolina, Appalachian State and Marshall.

[Wynnco.com]

September 16, 2007
Graham Makes Official Visit To USC
By Phil Kornblut

6-5 Delwan Graham of Dunwoody, GA made an official visit to USC over the weekend along with members of his family. Graham was very impressed by the visit and is strongly considering the Gamecocks who are focusing most of their recruiting efforts right now on Graham. "The visit was pretty cool, I liked it," Graham said. "I fit in real good with the players. They treated me like I was already part of the team." Graham said he spent much of his time with Dwayne Day. He also had a long conversation with Gamecock head coach Dave Odom. He also has visited Ole Miss and will make an official visit to LSU this weekend. He is down to USC, Ole Miss and LSU and plans to make a decision a few days after returning from Baton Rouge. He does not have a favorite at this point.

[Wynnco.com]

September 16, 2007
Quinn Takes Another Look At USC
By Phil Kornblut

DE Robert Quinn (6-6 255) of Fort Dorchester had a busy Saturday starting with his first ACT exam and ending with an trip to USC for the SC State game. It was the second unofficial visit Quinn has made this season to watch the Gamecocks in Columbia. "South Carolina is getting better and better," Quinn said. "I show up just before kickoff and talked to some of the coaches afterwards. They are just trying to get me to sign there. I also talked with Jasper Brinkley and Captain Munnerlyn." Quinn added that he also talked with his recruiter Shane Beamer and defensive coordinator Ty Nix. Quinn said he still has not narrowed his list nor decided on official visits. Among his other offers are Clemson, Florida, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Auburn, Virginia, Maryland, Louisville, Florida State, Rutgers and NC State. He talked by phone with Florida defensive coordinator Charley Strong Saturday. His former teammate, Carlos Dunlap Jr., is a freshman with the Gators.

[Wynnco.com]

September 16, 2007
Commings Enjoys USC Visit
By Phil Kornblut

ATH Sanders Commings Jr. (6-2 195) of Augusta made his second unofficial visit to USC Saturday, and the visit apparently helped the Gamecocks in this recruiting battle. "It definitely moved South Carolina up because I got the chance to meet the baseball coach," said Commings who plans to play both sports in college. "I met all the football coaches including coach Spurrier. After the game I went into the locker room and talked with the players and coaches. Captain Munnerlyn stood out. I basically met all the players from Georgia. Coach Spurrier said he thinks I can do big things for them as a freshman. He likes me as a safety." Commings said he could make a decision within the next couple of weeks, but he plans to make more unofficial visits, and he might take official visits to USC, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Florida and Maryland. Georgia Tech and Florida have not yet offered. Commings broke the fibula in his left leg in his season opening game and missed the next two games. He will be out at least one more week before he can return to action.

[Wynnco.com]

September 16, 2007
Whitlock Makes Official Visit To Alabama
By Phil Kornblut

Alabama scored an exciting win over Arkansas Saturday in Tuscaloosa and Chester ATH Charles Whitlock (5-11 175) was there as part of his official visit. "It was great," Whitlock said Sunday night just after returning home. "The environment, they love their football there, man. As I was walking into the game, they had fans who were chanting my name. It felt great there. The campus and facilities are nice. I talked with coach Saban before I left. He told me if I come there, outside of football, he'll make sure I develop myself as a better person off the field." Whitlock said Alabama is recruiting him as a cornerback. He will make all of his visits before deciding. He is scheduled to visit USC November 9th and Florida November 23rd. He will set visits with Clemson and North Carolina. Whitlock said he does not have a favorite.

[Wynnco.com]

September 17, 2007
USC, KlImp Sin Like Tar Heel Athlete
By Phil Kornblut

ATH E.J. Abrams-Ward (6-5 215) of Thomasville, NC has offers from USC and Clemson and is getting strong interest from both. And he's interested in both. "I like how Clemson runs the ball, and I like how South Carolina spreads the offense and gets the ball to receivers," he said. Abrams-Ward said he will try to get to games at both this season. He also has offers from North Carolina, Tennessee, Wake Forest, Boston College, NC State, Virginia Tech, Georgia, Florida and Virginia. Abrams-Ward can play quarterback, receiver, linebacker or defensive end. He's playing nothing but quarterback this season. He said he would prefer to play receiver in college. USC, North Carolina and Tennessee like him as a receiver, Clemson is recruiting him as a tight end. And Boston College wants him as a quarterback. The only official visit he is certain about at this point is North Carolina. He does not have a leader or a list of favorites.

[Wynnco.com]

September 17, 2007
Sanders Checks Out Gators
By Phil Kornblut

OL Zebrie Sanders (6-6 273) of Clayton, OH made an official visit to Florida this past weekend, his first official visit. "I really enjoyed it, the atmosphere and the academics," Sanders said. "They are a close knit team. They do a lot about family. They work well together. I like them a lot." Sanders said he will set visits with LSU and UCLA. He has a visit set with Georgia for November 2nd. He is considering USC, St