South Carolina football's top 10 all-time tight ends

With spring practice over for South Carolina, Gamecock fans have less than four months before their favorite team takes the field again for a game. To help bridge the gap (along with all of the recruiting coverage and summer updates you can read on GamecockCentral.com), GamecockCentral will be running a top-10 players by position series.

First, we took a look at the all-time great USC running backs.

Then, we voted on the best Carolina wide receivers in program history.

Now, this week, we move to the tight end position.

Chris Clark, Wes Mitchell, and I have put together our own top 10 lists. Many of the Gamecock Faithful on The Insiders Forum also have taken part in a two-part voting run this week.

Not every great tight end could make the lists, so it is worth mentioning names like Jay Saldi, John Rowland, Kyle Markway, Chris Corley, Marty Woolbright, and Ben Cornett as additional players brought up during the discussion. Plus, part-time tight ends like Pat DiMarco (probably the best fullback in South Carolina history), Danny Smith (who played a lot of receiver), and Stanley Pritchett (who spent more time at running back and fullback) are worthy of receiving a shoutout.

The results of all the voting are below, including a note on each player mentioned:

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Chris Clark

1. Hayden Hurst
2. Jared Cook
3. Willie Scott
4. Josh Simon
5. Rory “Busta” Anderson
6. Clyde “Mule” Bennett
7. Jerell Adams
8. Johnny Gregory
9. Nate Adkins
10. Doug Hamrick

Why Hayden Hurst is No. 1: “Hurst’s story is incredible, of course, but he was also a heck of a player. A tight end who’s a first-round pick has special ability, and “Garnet Thor” showed that during his career in Columbia.”

Wes Mitchell

1. Willie Scott
2. Hayden Hurst
3. Jared Cook
4. Clyde “Mule” Bennett
5. Doug Hamrick
6. Jerell Adams
7. Rory “Busta” Anderson
8. Matthew Campbell
9. Johnny Gregory
10. Josh Simon

Why Willie Scott is No. 1: “It’s easy to get caught up in the stats, but I’m going to go with a throwback to what the tight end position has traditionally meant, someone who can produce as a blocker and pass-catcher. While I didn’t get the privilege of seeing Willie Scott play, his bio lists him as a dominant blocker while he also collected 70 career receptions for 896 yards and seven touchdowns. This was in an era well before everyone was throwing the ball all around the yard. Scott was the No. 14 overall pick and the first tight end selected in the 1981 NFL Draft.”

Kevin Miller

1. Hayden Hurst
2. Jared Cook
3. Willie Scott
4. Clyde “Mule” Bennett
5. Josh Simon
6. Johnny Gregory
7. Rory “Busta” Anderson
8. Jerell Adams
9. Doug Hamrick
10. Weslye Saunders

Why Hayden Hurst is No. 1: “This one could have gone a few ways, but Hurst sits on top of my list. Despite playing just two seasons at tight end, he owns USC’s career records for receptions and yardage at the position. He was also a strong blocker and an occasional short-yardage rusher (Remember the “Dump Truck Sweep?”). Hurst was a stud in garnet and black.”

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The Insiders Forum

Votes in parentheses

1. Jared Cook (73)
2. Willie Scott (62)
3. Hayden Hurst (55)
4. Rory “Busta” Anderson (32)
5. Justice Cunningham (31)
6. Weslye Saunders (22)
T-7. Josh Simon (20)
T-7. Jerell Adams (20)
9. Matthew Campbell (18)
10. Nick Muse (8)

Notes on the Gamecock Greats

Hayden Hurst: Hayden Hurst took a unique path to playing football at South Carolina. “Garnet Thor” was a pitcher in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization before giving up the sport and enrolling at USC as a walk-on wide receiver for Steve Spurrier. He added some weight, though, and became an impact tight end on Will Muschamp’s first two teams. Hurst owns the Gamecocks’ all-time records for receiving yards and receptions from the tight end position.

Jared Cook: Perhaps the most gifted tight end in program history, Jared Cook was a freak. At 6-5 and 250 pounds, he ran and leapt like a gazelle in the open field. South Carolina didn’t get him the ball enough during his time in garnet and black. Even so, Cook is just behind Hurst on the all-time receiving yardage list. He then went on to a just-below-Hall-of-Fame level NFL career, too.

Willie Scott: Willie Scott was the third first-round pick in Gamecock history, but he was the second in 1981 behind some guy named George Rogers. Scott was an impressive athlete who ran well after the catch but was strong enough to be a lead blocker on many of Rogers’ toss sweep carries. Big No. 47’s long catch-and-run against Clemson set up the winning score in the 1979 Palmetto Bowl.

Josh Simon: Despite having just graduated, Josh Simon might be the most underappreciated Gamecock tight end ever. In 2024, he set the program’s single-season tight end record for touchdown receptions (seven) as he led the team in every receiving category. In his only other year at USC, Simon split time with Trey Knox but still managed to be third on the team in catches and fourth in receiving yards.

Rory “Busta” Anderson: Busta Anderson never had a 300-yard season at Carolina, but the athletic tight end was a contributor for four seasons. Though blocking wasn’t his forte, Anderson found a way to make big plays, including nine career touchdowns. Had he not shared a tight end room with other good players like Justice Cunningham and Jerell Adams, his numbers would have been even better.

Clyde Bennett: Playing tight end, split end, and defensive end for South Carolina in the early 1950s, Clyde Bennett was an important blocker and pass-catcher for the Gamecock offense. Nicknamed “Mule,” Bennett was tough as nails and earned All-American honors as a senior. Bennett was an integral part of the first ranked team in Carolina history. He also became an Air Force colonel after his playing career.

Jerell Adams: Jerell Adams was a defensive end prospect who converted to tight end with the Gamecocks. The move paid off for the big fella as he became a solid target for South Carolina. He played in some loaded tight end rooms but had his best year as a senior when he logged over 400 yards on a bad team in 2015.

Johnny Gregory: A product of a different era, Johnny Gregory didn’t post eye-popping stats. In fact, he has less than 700 career receiving yards. However, he was a tough player and a tremendous leader. Gregory was a strong blocker despite weighing less than 200 pounds, but he had his best day as a pass-catcher when he torched the Wake Forest Demon Deacons for three scores, becoming the first tight end in school history with a hat trick.

Nate Adkins: Nate Adkins arrived in Columbia as a one-year transfer from East Tennessee State, and he didn’t have much of a role early. However, by the time the year ended, he was arguably the team’s most important blocker and had come into his own as a receiver. Adkins lined up all over the offense, wherever the Gamecocks needed extra protection. He had his best two receiving games in his final two contests in garnet and black, and he sealed the 2022 win over Clemson with a forced fumble on special teams.

Doug Hamrick: The starting tight end on the 1969 ACC Championship team, Doug Hamrick was a good blocker who later developed into a weapon in the passing game for legendary quarterback Tommy Suggs. Hamrick had a big senior year in which he trailed only star wideout Jim Mitchell in receptions and receiving yardage.

Matthew Campbell: Matthew Campbell was not a modern-style tight end. Essentially an athletic tackle, Campbell was an extra offensive lineman for the Gamecocks, helping pave the way for big-time USC running back Brandon Bennett. His blocking was so good, in fact, that he started at guard for the Carolina Panthers after one season as a professional tight end.

Weslye Saunders: Weslye Saunders was one of the biggest tight ends ever to play a major role with the Gamecocks. Weighing in over 270 pounds, he was a solid blocker and a deceptively agile athlete as a receiver. Saunders didn’t play as a senior because of the Whitney Hotel suspension, but he was a good player for three years alongside players like Jared Cook and Justice Cunningham.

Justice Cunningham: Speaking of Justice Cunningham, the block-first tight end was a warrior for some really good Gamecock teams. He handled a lot of dirty work in the trenches but always felt like he had more to offer as a pass-catching weapon. Cunningham was able to showcase some of that as a senior in 2012, catching 324 yards worth of passes, including 20 that came on a 4th quarter grab against Vanderbilt in which he lost his helmet but not the football on what would be the game-winning drive.

Nick Muse: Nick Muse was another transfer tight end who began his college career at William and Mary. Following his transfer to South Carolina, he split time with several other future NFL players but stood out enough to be selected in the 2022 NFL Draft.

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