Clayton White considers how quickly Drew Tuazama could play at South Carolina

South Carolina added another player to its roster just two weeks out from the season, landing UAB transfer Drew Tuazama on Saturday. How quickly will he be able to get up to speed?

The Gamecocks are hoping quickly enough to be able to contribute on defense, possible even in the season opener against the Tar Heels.

“It really depends on how we integrate him into the program,” defensive coordinator Clayton White said. “One, we want him to be comfortable around the coaching staff and the players. I think that he’s mature enough, obviously, to where he can adapt to different situations, which he’s already dove right into our playbook.”

Tuazama could definitely make an impact if he can pick up the playbook quickly.

The former UAB star, who was at Syracuse before that, was an honorable mention All-Conference USA selection in 2022. He logged 33 tackles, five sacks, three pass breakups and three quarterback hurries.

He should be able to help South Carolina off the edge this fall.

And the good news is Tuazama has seemed very eager since his arrival in Columbia. He’s doing all the right things.

“He was trying to get the playbook the day that he came down here, which we was able to get him some introduction things,” White said. “It’s realistic that he can possibly play for sure. I really expect him to play.”

Shane Beamer recaps landing Drew Tuazama

The whirlwind (and brief) recruitment of Tuazama ended up in South Carolina’s favor, in part because of some key connections and some swift maneuvering on the part of coach Shane Beamer and his staff.

“He had a connection with (defensive tackle) Elijah Davis,” Beamer said. “They both spent some time at East Mississippi Community College so they knew each other. He’s from Raleigh originally, so he had connections to the Carolinas and wanted to get back closer to home. (Associate head) coach (Pete) Lembo and some other of our coaches were familiar with him from high school recruiting that area as well.”

Time was of the essence when Tuazama entered the portal given how close it was to the start of the season. As soon as Beamer heard of the news, he reached out to the 6-foot-5, 275-pound edge rusher through Twitter.

“He was a guy that he needed to graduate from UAB,” Beamer said. “He wasn’t able to graduate until a week or so ago and he graduated. We were made aware. He went in the portal. Before I even found out he was in the portal he had offers from Mississippi State, Florida and some other places as well. We immediately started following him on Twitter and sent him a direct message and he hit me right back and it kind of went from there.”

South Carolina will open the season on Sept. 2 against North Carolina in Charlotte.