South Carolina 'feels pretty good' in race for On3 No. 1 recruit Dylan Stewart

Shane Beamer landed his biggest win of the 2023 recruiting cycle when five-star athlete Nyckoles Harbor announced his pledge to South Carolina over Oregon. Now boasting a top-10 class in the 2024 cycle, the Gamecocks have themselves in position to land another elite five-star talent out of Washington DC in Friendship Collegiate Academy EDGE Dylan Stewart.

The No. 1 player in the 2024 On300, a pledge from Stewart would be the catalyst that propels South Carolina from a top-10 class to one competing for a spot in the top-five.

On the latest edition of the On3 Roundtable, South Carolina recruiting insider Wes Mitchell broke down where the Gamecocks sit in Stewart’s recruitment:

“I think they feel pretty good about where they currently sit. It does even remind you a little bit of Nicholas Harbor’s recruitment at the same point last year,” Mitchell said. “South Carolina got in on him early, started building those relationships and then were just kind of quietly sitting there going about their business. Other major schools got involved so he was taking visits to other places too but it just kind they quietly ran their game.

“In the case of Dylan Stewart, we were counting it up and I think they’ve had him on campus seven times. They’ll get him back for the official visit in June and they’ve really done a phenomenal job just recruiting DC in that greater DMV area under Shane Beamer as well. A lot of these kids know each other so I expect they’ll continue to sort of push that blueprint they have in the past of kind of getting those guys on campus together.”

Stewart would propel Gamecocks’ class into top-five talks

For a time the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM) had South Carolina in the lead to land Stewart’s pledge. That changed following visits to Ohio State and Alabama who now hold the top two spots.

South Carolina may be in a distant third according to the RPM but they’ll have the chance to impress again when they host Stewart on June 23.

That visit will come after he takes officials to Georgia (June 2), Miami (June 9) and Ohio State (June 16).

Landing Stewart’s pledge will be a priority going forward for Beamer and co. as they look to continue to build off of the momentum their 2024 class has garnered over the last few months.

South Carolina currently sits with nine commitments in its 2024 class. The class as a whole ranks as the No. 6 class in the country and No. 4 in the SEC.

“I think it certainly is tracking to be a top 10 class now,” Mitchell added. “Whether or not they can push into the top five is very, very difficult because you look at the competition down there with the likes of Georgia, Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan, LSU and Florida is in there this year fighting for a spot too. I mean competition is difficult so you’re gonna have to continue to add five stars and four stars just mathematically to stay in there.

“I think Dylan Stewart could be the key for them in getting into the top five but certainly you look at a guy like Daniel Hill, a highly recruited four-star athlete who they want at running back, Jonathan Paylor, a four-star wide receiver and there are several other defensive line and edge guys.”