Gamecocks Connection: The running back situation

Hey, I’m Chris Clark with GamecockCentral.com, and welcome to Gamecocks Connection.

This weekly newsletter will consist of a summary of some of the latest happenings in Gamecock Country, reader questions, and one “main idea” that’s on my mind. Plus, there will be some other goodies along the way.

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What’s on the docket today?

I’m talking about the running back room for Gamecock football. Plus, a reader question about five-star signee Nyckoles Harbor and how the recruiting process works for someone like him.

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Get caught up.

Three quick things to know about your Gamecocks from the last few days.

🏈 Brett McMurphy, who does a great job with postseason bowl projections, took a stab at some way-too-early preseason bowl picks. He has the Gamecocks matched up against Kansas in the Gasparilla Bowl. What would you think of that?

💰 It was reported this week that seven ACC schools have been engaged in discussions about potentially leaving the conference. The issue at hand for USC’s rival, Clemson, plus six others (FSU, UNC, NC State, Virginia, and Virginia Tech) is a revenue model which has them behind other conferences in payouts. SI’s Ross Dellenger reported on the progress made this week that makes it seem unlikely that there will be a mass exodus anytime soon.

⚾ The slide continued on Tuesday night for the South Carolina baseball team, dropping a midweek contest to Charlotte for the second time this season. A critical final weekend SEC series with Tennessee awaits at Founders Park beginning on Thursday.

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The main idea.

South Carolina’s need for additional help at the running back through the transfer portal has been well documented. 

Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, the program lost out on a couple of options that could have potentially checked that box.

Logan Diggs – a Louisiana native who is transferring from Notre Dame, committed to LSU on Tuesday. That was followed up by NC State’s Demi Sumo-Kargnbaye matriculating to Kentucky.

Keyvone Lee, a Penn State transfer that USC had also done some digging on, enrolled at Mississippi State this week.

With the undergraduate transfer portal window closed, that leaves as options for USC: A) anyone who is already in the portal from the post-spring period; B) any graduate transfers who may jump in this summer.

There are not any new names to pass along as of this writing, but it will be interesting to see which direction USC ultimately goes here.

Just three scholarship backs are on the roster: JuJu McDowell, Mario Anderson, and Dakereon Joyner. Anderson’s in his first season with the program and Joyner’s in his first at the position. McDowell is not thought of as an every-down back, though he’s made some key plays during his career.

Anderson and Joyner both turned in quality springs, especially Joyner, who raised some eyebrows with his play despite being banged up.

Four-star freshman DJ Braswell joins the program this summer and will have every opportunity to compete.

I would offer up a possible candidate to help from the 2023 recruiting class who’s not yet on campus, though. 

What if USC gave former high school quarterback Kam Sandlin a look as a bigger back? 

There’s no doubt that the staff – and fan base – would feel better if another back could be added to this room, whether it’s a starter-caliber player or just some additional depth. It’s almost unreasonable to think that USC will go through a 12-game regular season slate with no injuries or bang-ups at a position that takes plenty of punishment.

Remember the 2011 season in Columbia? That was a year in which true freshman Brandon Wilds began the year as the fifth-string tailback and ended up playing key snaps due to a rash of injuries.

For my money, the EDGE position is still an even bigger concern. It’s harder to ‘hide’ that, whereas a good offensive staff can employ more smoke and mirrors with a position like running back.

Despite feeling better about the current roster members exiting the spring than entering, a position that entered 2023 as a concern still remains one that must be proven on the field.

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A question from the crowd.

Q: Hey Chris, this may or may not be a question worth considering, maybe it’s been hashed over already. But, would it be worth asking what the recruiting process looks like for, say a Nyck Harbor, from the time our staff hears of him the first time to everything that is entailed until he actually signs, not just announces.

– Preacher B. from The Insiders Forum

My answer: Not all paths are created equal for prospects, so let’s focus on the specific one that you mentioned in Harbor.

When Jadeveon Clowney hit the radar, for instance, it was well-known he was going to be a national prospect and most likely a generational talent. 

Harbor’s took a bit longer. He once described this situation to us when we visited him at his high school in Washington, D.C. 

Shane Beamer first found out about Harbor as an assistant at Oklahoma. He helped open plenty of doors for Lincoln Riley out there because of his ties to the DMV region. Beamer was recruiting offensive lineman Anton Harrison out of Archbishop Carroll, who ended up signing with the Sooners.

Harbor, at that time, was just a freshman. “Just a three-star,” as he would later tell us. Beamer took note and began tracking Harbor.

When he got the job in Columbia in December 2020, Harbor immediately became a top priority. The five-star’s profile grew due to his track exploits and on-field potential and the offers began to pile up. Beamer was able to take advantage of the early relationships he had built.

Of course, as we have extensively reported on, Harbor’s recruitment at the end was a whirlwind that came down to the final hours. 

To go back to your general question, sometimes prospects are camp offers heading into their senior season. Sometimes they are on the radar as an eighth grader.

Programs find out about them from a variety of sources: high school coaches, trainers, social media, camps, and scouting services, to name several. 

Coaches typically gather more information via phone or evaluation period stops to a high school, and each program’s recruiting department is constantly digging for information like track times and measurable. Relationships are built via phone, social media messaging, and on-campus visits.

Want to have your Gamecocks question answered here? Email me: [email protected] or hit me on Twitter: @GCChrisClark. 

Members can ask on The Insiders Forum. FYI: Premium subscribers do get priority; it’s only fair!

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What we’re talking about.

GamecockCentral.com premium member _Jumanji_ has opened up a fascinating discussion on The Insiders Forum regarding NIL and the transfer portal.

“When these rules were first put into place a lot of posters thought this would even the playing field for USC. I thought it would largely be to our detriment. As the saying goes the truth usually somewhere in the middle and I think it’s probably still playing out.”

He goes on to wonder how other Gamecocks fans are feeling, and whether the rule changes are hurting USC more than helping.

If you are a subscriber with us, come visit the thread and give us your take. What do you think?

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Darius Rush.

It was incredibly fun to watch the progression of this Kingstree, S.C., native.

I still remember watching Darius in camp as a skinny, pretty raw, wide receiver in the summer of 2017.

He started turning the corner as a player during the 2020 season after moving to defensive back.

By the time his career finished, he was a key performer on special teams and in the secondary, working his way to an NFL Draft pick.

It’s an awesome story. Our friends over at Gamecocks Plus recently filmed a documentary on Rush titled: My Time: “Small Town, Big Dreams: Darius Rush’s Life Calling”.

Check out the trailer here. You can visit the Gamecocks Plus website for more information on how to watch this feature and the rest of the content.

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A thanks and a request.

I sincerely thank you for reading this newsletter and hope it’s informative and enjoyable for you.

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