Shane Beamer updates the availability of South Carolina WR Juice Wells vs. Florida

South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer provided an update on star receiver Juice Wells during his press conference on Tuesday.

Beamer shared that Wells is doubtful for Saturday’s matchup against Florida, according to Mike Uva of GamecockCentral.

While Juice Wells is unlikely to play against the Gators, Beamer said the foot injury is healing at a really good pace, according to Uva.

Wells has played a limited number of snaps this season after entering the year with a foot injury. He made it back for the opener against North Carolina but clearly wasn’t 100 percent.

Wells caught one pass for 5 yards the following weekend against Furman and was off to a strong start in the SEC opener against Georgia.

However, after catching two passes for 32 yards and a touchdown on the opening possession against the Bulldogs, Wells was sidelined for the rest of the game. He hasn’t played since that matchup on Sept. 16.

Juice Wells led South Carolina in receiving last year, catching 63 passes for 898 yards and six scores. He ended the year on a high note, combining to record 20 catches for 308 yards in wins over Tennessee and Clemson.

Wells was hoping to build off that momentum in 2023, but so far he hasn’t been able to get healthy and stay on the field. With Wells out, Xavier Legette has stepped up and emerged as one of the best receivers in the country. The senior currently leads the Gamecocks with 32 catches for 606 yards and three touchdowns.

Where Spencer Rattler’s NFL Draft stock stands

Even with receiver Juice Wells out for much of the year, South Carolina quarterback Spencer Rattler has still put up impressive stats.

The senior is completing 73 percent of his passes and has thrown for more than 1,400 yards through the first five games of the year.

NFL teams are starting to take notice of Rattler’s play, and he has reportedly moved up some draft boards.

ESPN NFL draft analyst Matt Miller joined the First Draft podcast and shared his thoughts on where Rattler’s draft stock currently stands.

“He closed out the year last year so well and really put a positive trajectory on his draft stock. There was conversation he may have entered last year’s draft because of that, because they closed out the year so strongly,” Miller said. “He is a dynamic playmaker. He creates opportunities. He’s great at extending the pocket. And his arm talent is, I mean it’s as good as any in this class. It’s probably the best in this class, in terms of deep ball ability and the way that he can create that arc.”