Recruiting went 1-3 over the weekend

[18IsTheMan]

It was a big recruiting weekend, with 4 highly touted prospects and Gamecock targets making commitments. We hit on Kendall Daniels, the lowest rated of the 4. Missed on Juan Gaston, Jaylen Gilchrist and Jared Smith.

Add into that missing on high priority in-state target Malik Clark last week.

There was a poster on here a few months ago who adamantly rebuked us all and assured that recruiting would pick up steam. What targets do we have left?

 

[18IsTheMan]

If you look at uncommited recruits we have offered, only 1 is rated as "warm". 3* Jayvon McFadden. All others are "cool".

South Carolina 2025 Football Offers

South Carolina

247sports.com

I think we need a season on the order of at least 8 wins to flip some recruits back to us. 6-6 ain't gonna cut it. We might see that as a big deal, given the schedule, but it won't move the needle with recruits.

 

[Lurker123]

There was a poster on here a few months ago who adamantly rebuked us all and assured that recruiting would pick up steam. What targets do we have left?

If I remember the conversation you are referring to, the poster was saying that missing out on a lot of players was no big deal, because we were still mentioned on the lists of other players.

Now that we're striking out on those, I am curious as to his response.

Regardless, I am just resigning myself to us being the type of team that scouts the portal yearly for talent that either other teams missed, or don't have room for.

 

[18IsTheMan]

If I remember the conversation you are referring to, the poster was saying that missing out on a lot of players was no big deal, because we were still mentioned on the lists of other players.

Now that we're striking out on those, I am curious as to his response.

Regardless, I am just resigning myself to us being the type of team that scouts the portal yearly for talent that either other teams missed, or don't have room for.

With the increase in the number of scholarship offers for football, there will be a big jump in portal activity as well, so I agree that's where we're going to have to thrive.

Can you build a consistent winner that way? Not likely.

 

[PrestonyteParrot]

With the increase in the number of scholarship offers for football, there will be a big jump in portal activity as well, so I agree that's where we're going to have to thrive.

Can you build a consistent winner that way? Not likely.

It will be tough because we will be competing with many of the same teams for the top portal players.

 

[Slim Chickens Gamecock]

Doesn't seem to be any momentum at all. Winning 9 this season almost becomes mandatory to reinspire belief in us as a "building program".

 

[18IsTheMan]

It will be tough because we will be competing with many of the same teams for the top portal players.

It will be tough, for sure. I know the new boilerplate fan language when we miss on a recruit is "well, we'll get a shot at him in the portal in the next year or two."

But, honestly, do we see ourselves making a living in the portal?

Maybe the increase football scholarships will help us in some regard. The blue bloods will amass more high school talent and then a bunch of that talent will hop into the portal after a year or two, so the portal will be more active than ever. Of course, it'll kill us on the front end with our high school recruiting as it's going to be an even steeper uphill climb with UGAs and Bamas of the world being able to sign more players.

 

[18IsTheMan]

Doesn't seem to be any momentum at all. Winning 9 this season almost becomes mandatory to reinspire belief in us as a "building program".

Right you are. We looking at the schedule every which way to see if we can find 6, maybe 7 wins, on it. I just don't think that will move the needle for flipping recruits. I think it'll take a minimum of 8 to get any recruits to reconsider. And one of those 8 needs to be a marquee-type win (Bama or OU, preferably for national recognition).

 

[18IsTheMan]

Doesn't seem to be any momentum at all. Winning 9 this season almost becomes mandatory to reinspire belief in us as a "building program".

I suppose the biggest thing to me is that recruiting results are a reflection of what recruits think of your program. The resounding response right now is that they don't think much of us at all.

 

[PrestonyteParrot]

Right you are. We looking at the schedule every which way to see if we can find 6, maybe 7 wins, on it. I just don't think that will move the needle for flipping recruits. I think it'll take a minimum of 8 to get any recruits to reconsider. And one of those 8 needs to be a marquee-type win (Bama or OU, preferably for national recognition).

We are definitely going to need some headline grabbers.

 

[gamecock stock]

It was a big recruiting weekend, with 4 highly touted prospects and Gamecock targets making commitments. We hit on Kendall Daniels, the lowest rated of the 4. Missed on Juan Gaston, Jaylen Gilchrist and Jared Smith.

Add into that missing on high priority in-state target Malik Clark last week.

There was a poster on here a few months ago who adamantly rebuked us all and assured that recruiting would pick up steam. What targets do we have left?

18, you have been a USC fan for a long time, I think. Do you ever remember us being a recruiting juggernaut? I don't. Unless there is an Elon Musk or Warren Buffet among our alumni or some corporations step up, I don't see us ever being NIL wealthy. And I see nothing on the NCAA horizon putting a cap on NIL spending. And even if there is a cap, again, we have never been a recruiting powerhouse. Why would that change? We share a small state with Clemson. And we border with traditional powerhouses....Georgia, Tennessee and Florida. We cannot recruit ourselves to respectability. Beamer has to play the cards he has been dealt and win with them. We will never win the national championship nor the SEC. But maybe, maybe we can become a Top 20 program through better than average coaching. Frank Beamer was never a great recruiter. But he was a damn good coach. Is Shane a "chip off the old block"? I don't know. But I think we will find out this season.

I have resigned myself that being a Top 20 program is the best we will ever be. It will take better than average coaching to achieve that.

 

[18IsTheMan]

18, you have been a USC fan for a long time, I think. Do you ever remember us being a recruiting juggernaut? I don't. Unless there is an Elon Musk or Warren Buffet among our alumni or some corporations step up, I don't see us ever being NIL wealthy. And I see nothing on the NCAA horizon putting a cap on NIL spending. And even if there is a cap, again, we have never been a recruiting powerhouse. Why would that change? We share a small state with Clemson. And we border with traditional powerhouses....Georgia, Tennessee and Florida. We cannot recruit ourselves to respectability. Beamer has to play the cards he has been dealt and win with them. We will never win the national championship nor the SEC. But maybe, maybe we can become a Top 20 program through better than average coaching. Frank Beamer was never a great recruiter. But he was a damn good coach. Is Shane a "chip off the old block"? I don't know. But I think we will find out this season.

I have resigned myself that being a Top 20 program is the best we will ever be. It will take better than average coaching to achieve that.

I agree, we have never been a recruiting juggernaut. Nothing close to it. Even Spurrier didn't sniff the top 10 here in recruiting.

That said, this class is, so far, disappointing, even by our typical standards.

 

[gamecock stock]

That said, this class is, so far, disappointing, even by our typical standards.

VERY true.

 

[18IsTheMan]

VERY true.

Also to add to the portal discussion above. Let's say the worst happens and we stumble to a 4-8 record or maybe 5-7.

What will our attrition look like? Nyck? Stewart? Pringle? etc. The vultures with NIL $ will come sniffing around.

 

[gamecock stock]

Also to add to the portal discussion above. Let's say the worst happens and we stumble to a 4-8 record or maybe 5-7.

What will our attrition look like? Nyck? Stewart? Pringle? etc. The vultures with NIL $ will come sniffing around.

That is a nightmare scenario.

 

[Sweetwatergolf]

18, you have been a USC fan for a long time, I think. Do you ever remember us being a recruiting juggernaut? I don't. Unless there is an Elon Musk or Warren Buffet among our alumni or some corporations step up, I don't see us ever being NIL wealthy. And I see nothing on the NCAA horizon putting a cap on NIL spending. And even if there is a cap, again, we have never been a recruiting powerhouse. Why would that change? We share a small state with Clemson. And we border with traditional powerhouses....Georgia, Tennessee and Florida. We cannot recruit ourselves to respectability. Beamer has to play the cards he has been dealt and win with them. We will never win the national championship nor the SEC. But maybe, maybe we can become a Top 20 program through better than average coaching. Frank Beamer was never a great recruiter. But he was a damn good coach. Is Shane a "chip off the old block"? I don't know. But I think we will find out this season.

I have resigned myself that being a Top 20 program is the best we will ever be. It will take better than average coaching to achieve that.

Very good factual points you make here. Especially reference to Frank Beamer.

 

[Roosterbell]

I'm hoping our defense is as good as advertised. That's our best hope to stay close in a lot of these games. We need a lot of good breaks to go our way to get to 7 or 8 wins.

7 wins and staying competitive could get us back on track to turn some heads. 8 doesn't look very possible but would be enormous for recruiting. Unfortunately, even with either of those scenarios playing out, we evidently struggle to compete with Nil.

 

[athenscock3]

We got a lot of looks and favorable comments from some top flight talent. We threw the net wide but the fish weren't biting. Personally I think the staff worked hard to get in the conservation with these guys but some were a UGA given from day one. I don't think that would change even if we had a better record on the field. Georgia kids want to play for their state university when it's got so much going for it. Of the kids declaring this weekend Smith and Gilchrist are the biggest disappointments cause like so many others they favored us for so long. Biggest disappointment though Clark. Instate and Rock Hill to boot. Not a good year on the hs level imo. A ray of sunshine 2026 looks like a good year for S. C. hs talent and most favor us as well as some highly rated Charlotte kids who like USC so far. But will they love us tomorrow???.

 

[gamecock stock]

I'm hoping our defense is as good as advertised. That's our best hope to stay close in a lot of these games. We need a lot of good breaks to go our way to get to 7 or 8 wins.

7 wins and staying competitive could get us back on track to turn some heads. 8 doesn't look very possible but would be enormous for recruiting. Unfortunately, even with either of those scenarios playing out, we struggle to compete with Nil.

Do we know how we compare with others, including Clemson, regarding NIL? I have no idea. I know our new women's softball coach was bragging about the NIL available to her. Dawn Staley seems to "kill" it in recruiting. Sometimes, we don't know what we don't know. This could be one of those times. The fact is that we often struggled in recruiting, compared to other SEC teams and Clemson, prior to NIL.

 

[Mountain guy]

Do we know how we compare with others, including Clemson, regarding NIL? I have no idea. I know our new women's softball coach was bragging about the NIL available to her. Dawn Staley seems to "kill" it in recruiting. Sometimes, we don't know what we don't know. This could be one of those times. The fact is that we often struggled in recruiting, compared to other SEC teams and Clemson, prior to NIL.

Exactly why I think fans over blow the extent of being out bid in NIL. This is still the same O just a different year.

Also from what I've read from threads on here, we are above the NIL available funds than Clemson.

 

[treyno2722]

I'm hoping our defense is as good as advertised. That's our best hope to stay close in a lot of these games. We need a lot of good breaks to go our way to get to 7 or 8 wins.

7 wins and staying competitive could get us back on track to turn some heads. 8 doesn't look very possible but would be enormous for recruiting. Unfortunately, even with either of those scenarios playing out, we evidently struggle to compete with Nil.

I'm glad you're being realistic about the number of wins. I just want 6 every year and a cheesy bowl at best. Our best years (Spurrier) are long gone.

 

[18IsTheMan]

I'm glad you're being realistic about the number of wins. I just want 6 every year and a cheesy bowl at best. Our best years (Spurrier) are long gone.

That's all you want or that's all you reasonably expect?

 

[gamecock stock]

That's all you want or that's all you reasonably expect?

18, you and I are on the same page, as we usually are. If 6 is our ceiling, I just as soon stop caring.

 

[18IsTheMan]

18, you and I are on the same page. If 6 is our ceiling, I just as soon stop caring.

Yeah. When you start with 3-4 wins in your back pocket, getting 6 wins is totally meaningless.

 

[Gamecock Jacque]

Yeah. When you start with 3-4 wins in your back pocket, getting 6 wins is totally meaningless.

It has a meaning. It means improvement. Then keep it going.

 

[18IsTheMan]

It has a meaning. It means improvement. Then keep it going.

No, it doesn't. Last year we started with 3 wins in the bank and finished with 5 wins. This year we start with 4 wins in the bank. If we finish with 6 wins, we'll have still only picked up 2 somewhat meaningful wins. Same as last year.

 

[Gamecock Jacque]

No, it doesn't. Last year we started with 3 wins in the bank and finished with 5 wins. This year we start with 4 wins in the bank. If we finish with 6 wins, we'll have still only picked up 2 somewhat meaningful wins. Same as last year.

Your logic is baffleling to me. Last year we were mere seconds away from just having 4 wins. I've seen us lose to The Cidadel. Twice. Appalachian State. There are no games "in the bank". Not for us. Going to ANY kind of bowl this year would be an improvement. Then keep improving from there.

 

[18IsTheMan]

Your logic is baffleling to me. Last year we were mere seconds away from just having 4 wins. I've seen us lose to The Cidadel. Twice. Appalachian State. There are no games "in the bank". Not for us. Going to ANY kind of bowl this year would be an improvement. Then keep improving from there.

The simple fact is if we get 6 wins this year, it's only b/c we swapped out a P5 game (UNC) for a lower-level opponent. Last year we had wins over Furman, Jacksonville State, Vandy, UK and MSU. If we get 6 wins this year, it will come with wins over ODU, Akron, Wofford, Vandy and 2 other games. Arguably, 6 wins would even be regression from last year as this year's non-conference slate is easier than last year's. Jacksonville State and Furman are better teams than ODU, Akron or Wofford.

 

[Gamecock Jacque]

The simple fact is if we get 6 wins this year, it's only b/c we swapped out a P5 game (UNC) for a lower-level opponent. Last year we had wins over Furman, Jacksonville State, Vandy, UK and MSU. If we get 6 wins this year, it will come with wins over ODU, Akron, Wofford, Vandy and 2 other games. Arguably, 6 wins would even be regression from last year as this year's non-conference slate is easier than last year's. Jacksonville State and Furman are better teams than ODU, Akron or Wofford.

Again you're counting games in the win column that haven't been played yet. This team has no games "in the bank".

 

[18IsTheMan]

Again you're counting games in the win column that haven't been played yet. This team has no games "in the bank".

You know as well as I do if we get to 6 wins it will be because we have beaten ODU, Akron, Wofford and Vandy. There is no scenario in which we get 6 wins without winning those games. Could we lose one of them? Sure. But we won't be getting to 6 wins then. This discussion is in the context of us getting to 6 wins. Any discussion of us getting 6 or more wins this year (shoot, even 5 wins or more) assumes we win those 4 games.

In that scenario, we will have basically swapped a UNC loss for a win over Akron, who went 2-10 last year. I don't call that progress.

 

[gamecock stock]

It has a meaning. It means improvement. Then keep it going.

But Jacque, Treyno says, "I just want 6 wins every year and a cheesy bowl at best". I don't interpret that as "improvement". I interpret that as "settling". Maybe he needs to clarify his thought.

 

[Gamecock Jacque]

But Jacque, Treyno says, "I just want 6 wins every year and a cheesy bowl at best". I don't interpret that as "improvement". I interpret that as "settling". Maybe he needs to clarify his thought.

Take that up with him Stock. I don't fall into that category.

 

[gamecock stock]

Take that up with him Stock. I don't fall into that category.

I know that Jacque. I'm not expecting you to explain. As I said, he needs to clarify his thoughts, because it sounds to me like mediocrity.

 

[gamecock stock]

I'm glad you're being realistic about the number of wins. I just want 6 every year and a cheesy bowl at best. Our best years (Spurrier) are long gone.

So, 6 wins every year and you'd be satisfied?

 

[gamecock stock]

My feeling is that if you have a coach who is good at organizing, strategizing, creating the tactics to implement the strategy and can motivate, then that coach, with solid recruiting, can annually produce a Top 20 program. That does not mean that coach has to be as good as Spurrier, but better than what Beamer has shown thus far. Of course, with this year's schedule, Beamer has the chance to show he is that coach. I hope so, anyway.

 

[Lurker123]

So, 6 wins every year and you'd be satisfied?

I have to admit, there's a part ofme that looks at our program and says "just get me to a bowl each year, and I'm in".

Realistically, I think we should be a bowl team, with occasional spikes in years we get lucky, or strike it rich with a qb. Missing a bowl should be a rare thing.

All jmo.

 

[muscleknight]

What dollar figures was Clemson paying in the 80's? I remember Hershal Walker saying that UGA beat CU's offer.

 

[Mountain guy]

What dollar figures was Clemson paying in the 80's? I remember Hershal Walker saying that UGA beat CU's offer.

That's because UGA topped off the offer with a brand new Trans Am.

 

[18IsTheMan]

I have to admit, there's a partner me that looks at our program and says "just get me to a bowl each year, and I'm in".

Realistically, I think we should be a bowl team, with occasional spikes in years we get lucky, or strike it rich with a qb. Missing a bowl should be a rare thing.

All jmo.

Not just your opinion. It's fact.

Bowl eligibility should be the absolute bare minimum expectation. The schedule is padded with 3 creampuff games each year, at a minimum, so you only need to go 3-6 in your remaining games. This year, we have 4, so we only need a record of 2-6 in meaningful games to get a bowl. 2-3 wins isn't asking a whole lot. Bowl eligibility is an exceedingly low bar. This is not the old days when getting a bowl meant you had a pretty good season.

On top of that, 64% of teams go to a bowl. It takes some effort to be in that bottom 36% and not go bowling.

 

[gamecock stock]

If we can annually have a year like 2022 but also win the bowl, I'd be satisfied. Is that asking for too much? Not sure.