Louis Riddick impressed with South Carolina WR Xavier Legette at Senior Bowl practices

ESPN’s Louis Riddick is one of the nation’s top experts when it comes to football analysis/scouting prospects. It certainly carries a lot of weight when a prospect/player can grab his attention. Plenty of prospects from around the country are trying to catch the eye of scouts and NFL decision makers this week at the 2024 Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. One player who caught Riddick’s attention in Wednesday’s practices was South Carolina wide receiver Xavier Legette.

@GamecockFB WR Xavier Legette had a VERY strong day. Inside. Outside, short/intermediate/deep, contested catches , run after catch…he can do all of it at a high level.

— Louis Riddick (@LRiddickESPN) January 31, 2024

“WR Xavier Legette had a VERY strong day. Inside. Outside, short/intermediate/deep, contested catches, run after catch….he can do all of it at a high level.”

Legette played his fifth and final season at South Carolina and boy did it pay off. Because he’s a late bloomer, he might go a bit under the radar.

But even on a team that didn’t quite meet expectations, Legette finished with 71 catches, 1,255 yards, seven touchdowns and 17.7 yards per catch. He was one of the most productive pass catchers in the country. The 1,255 receiving yards was the second-highest single-season mark in school history.

He’s earned plenty of praise from plenty of people across the country this offseason, including Mel Kiper. Ahead of the Senior Bowl practices, ESPN’s Mel Kiper also ranked the former South Carolina star in the Top 10 WRs in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Legette racked up the accolades his senior season, earning first team All-SEC honors from some publications and earning second team All-SEC honors from others. He became just the fifth South Carolina player in school history to eclipse over 1,000 receiving yards in a single-season. His best game came against Jacksonville State--when he torched them for 217 receiving yards. The 217 receiving yards were the second-most in school history, just 16 yards of tying Pharoh Cooper (2014) for the program record.

One of the most electrifying players in the nation, Legette returned the opening kickoff 100-yards for a touchdown against the Texas A&M Aggies in 2022. It was the second longest kick return in school history. He returned 15 kicks for 441 yards, averaging 29.4 yards per return (school-record).

During his 53 games with the Gamecocks, Legette racked up 2,456 total yards. He saved one of his best seasons for last, racking up 1,459 all-purpose yards this past season.

As a high school prospect coming out of Mullins (Mullins, South Carolina), Legette was rated as a three-star prospect and the No. 761 overall player in the country, according to the On3 Industry Rankings for the 2019 cycle.

On3’s Nick Kosko also contributed to this article.