Comparing South Carolina football commitments in On3 and ESPN rankings
South Carolina football recruiting is trending in a positive direction. Over the past few weeks, the Gamecocks have landed big-time commitments in both the 2025 and 2026 cycles. According to On3’s industry team rankings, USC ranks 21st nationally in the class of 2025.
On Wednesday, ESPN released its updated rankings for the class, and several Gamecock pledges were affected. Some moved up, but others dipped a little.
Ten Gamecock pledges own 4-star rantings based on rankings from all four major recruiting services. On3 ranks seven future Gamecocks as blue-chip prospects, but ESPN only views six Carolina commits as 4-star recruits.
Let’s look at how each player in the class stacks up according to both On3 and ESPN. (Players are in ESPN rankings order; if tied, then, On3 industry ranking order)
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Ridge View High School receiver Jordon Gidron is the No. 2 player in USC’s class in On3’s industry ranking. He is No. 196 nationally, No. 4 in the Palmetto State, and No. 23 at his position.
However, Gidron ranks No. 1 in the class according to ESPN. He is ranked 128th in America, No. 2 in the state, and No. 15 of all wide receivers. His high ranking comes even though he moved from the 2026 class to 2025 recently.
Despite reclassifying and dealing with some minor injuries, Gidron is a 4-star prospect in three of four major recruiting rankings.
Rock Hill wide receiver Malik Clark is the highest-rated player in the On3 industry rankings, slotting in at No. 177 overall, No. 2 in the state, and No. 21 nationally among receivers.
Similarly, in ESPN’s ranking, Clark is No. 176, No. 3 in the state, and No. 21 among wideouts. He is second among Gamecocks commits according to ESPN.
Clark is a consensus 4-star prospect.
Out-of-state receiver Lex Cyrus sits 3rd in the class in On3’s composite rankings. He is No. 226 nationally, No. 7 in Pennsylvania, and the No. 29 wide receiver.
According to ESPN, Cyrus is No. 291 in the national ranking, No. 12 in Pennsylvania, and No. 39 among receivers. He owns the third-best ESPN ranking in the class.
Cyrus is a 4-star prospect in three of the four major recruiting rankings. GamecockCentral’s Chris Clark provided an update on Cyrus last week that you can read here.
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A big defensive back, Damarcus Leach is South Carolina football’s 13th-ranked commitment in On3’s industry rankings. He is 661st nationally, No. 15 in South Carolina, and the No. 56 safety in America.
In contrast, ESPN ranks Leach as a 4-star in the class of 2025 and fourth in the class. The Abbeville native is No. 7 in the Palmetto State and No. 25 nationally among safeties.
ESPN is the only outlet that views Leach as a 4-star prospect at this time.
Brian Rowe, a Concord, North Carolina product, is next up in the On3 industry rankings. Rowe is ranked 6th in USC’s class. He is No. 353 from a national perspective, 10th overall in North Carolina, and No. 52 nationally among wideouts.
ESPN also rates Rowe as a 4-star receiver. The explosive playmaker is No. 7 in the Tar Heel state and the No. 48 receiver in the nation. He is fifth among South Carolina football pledges in the class.
Rowe is a 4-star based on rankings from two of the four major publications. On3’s player rankings view him as a 3-star recruit.
Dodd is the highest-rated player in the Gamecocks’ 2025 cycle based on On3’s player rankings. He is fourth, though, in On3’s composite industry rankings. Dodd is No. 272 nationally, No. 5 in the state, and No. 29 among EDGE rushers.
Dodd also is an ESPN 4-star and sixth in the class. The worldwide leader views him as the state’s 8th-best player and as the country’s No. 38 defensive end.
He is considered a 4-star recruit by three of the four national recruiting services. However, On3 is noticeably higher on Dodd than the rest of the industry, ranking him No. 99 overall and the No. 11 EDGE in the outlet’s individual player rankings.
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Virginia defensive back Kendall Daniels is No. 5 in the class based on On3’s industry rankings. He is ranked No. 274 overall, No. 6 in Virginia, and No. 24 among all safeties.
ESPN views Daniels as a 4-star player. He is the 13th-rated prospect in Virginia and the 29th safety in ESPN’s rankings. The outlet ranks Daniels seventh in the Gamecocks’ class.
Daniels is a 4-star prospect according to all four major publications.
LaNorris Sellers’ younger brother, Jayden Sellers is 15th in the class according to the On3 industry ranking. 830th is his overall ranking, and he sits at No. 19 in the state and 131st among receivers.
ESPN ranks Sellers as a 3-star, but he is just one point away from 4-star status. At No. 8 in the class, Sellers is 10th in the state of South Carolina but No. 68 among national receivers.
Sellers is a consensus 3-star but is challenging for 4-star status according to two services.
Caleb Williams is 11th in On3’s industry evaluation of the class. He is No. 556 overall, No. 16 in Virginia, and the 54th-ranked defensive lineman.
No. 16 in Virginia and No. 41 among defensive tackles are the numbers next to Williams’ name on ESPN. He is a 3-star prospect and 9th in USC’s class.
Williams was a former 4-star according to 247Sports. However, he is now a consensus 3-star player. He is just one point behind a 4-star rating in three of the four ranking systems.
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Gaffney High School offensive lineman Shed Sarratt is 7th in On3’s industry ranking of the class. He is rated as an interior offensive lineman on On3 but as a tackle according to the other outlets. He is a composite 4-star ranked No. 362 nationally, 8th in South Carolina, and 30th at his position.
A 3-star prospect on ESPN, Sarratt is also the outlet’s No. 11 in-state player and No. 53 offensive tackle. ESPN ranks him as a 3-star tackle.
Two major recruiting sites rank Sarratt as a 4-star lineman, one as a tackle, and one as an interior player.
Ranked 16th in the class by the On3 industry composite ranking, Kobby Skyi-Prah is a 3-star EDGE player. He slots in as the No. 873 player in high school football, 97th in Georgia, and 72nd among EDGE players.
On ESPN, Sakyi-Prah is rated as the No. 71 player in the Peach State and No. 65 overall defensive end. The Roswell High School standout is a 3-star pledge.
ESPN is higher on Sakyi-Prah than the other services as he is just short of 4-star territory. He is a consensus 3-star recruit.
A Gamecock already at Sumter High, Anthony Addison also is the South Carolina Gamecocks’ 9th-best recruit according to On3’s composite. Addison is the 510th-ranked national prospect, No. 11 in South Carolina, and 45th among all EDGEs.
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ESPN ranks Addison as a 3-star, No. 12 in the state, and No. 67 defensive end. ESPN has him as 12th in the class.
Rivals is significantly higher on Addison than the other services, ranking him as a 4-star and 18th-best defensive end in the country. It is the only outlet that ranks him as a 4-star performer.
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Donovan Darden is No. 657 nationally according to On3’s industry rankings, 17th in North Carolina, and No. 60 among EDGEs. He is 12th in the class according to On3 and a 3-star.
13th on ESPN’s evaluation of South Carolina’s class, Darden also is 17th in North Carolina and the 72nd-ranked defensive end.
Darden is ranked as a composite 3-star prospect but is just off of 4-star pace on On3. He also is rated as a defensive end/EDGE by every service but could play linebacker at South Carolina.
The No. 962 national prospect, No. 110 in Georgia, and No. 106 linebacker in On3’s industry rankings is AJ Holloway. Overall, he is On3’s 17th-ranked player in the Gamecocks’ recruiting class.
ESPN’s 14th-rated Gamecock commit, Holloway is No. 89 in the Peach State and No. 25 among inside linebackers.
Holloway is a consensus 3-star linebacker prospect. ESPN separates inside linebackers from outside linebackers (both traditional outside ‘backers and stand-up EDGE players), therefore, giving him a higher positional ranking.
On3 rates Jaquel Holman as a composite 3-star linebacker and the 8th-best player in the class. 247Sports lists him as a running back, and both ESPN and Rivals consider Holman an athlete. In On3’s industry rankings, Holman is No. 400 nationally, No. 9 in-state, and No. 40 among linebackers.
ESPN rates Holman as the state’s 15th-best player and the country’s 47th-ranked athlete. He is also the 15th-ranked player in the Gamecocks’ recruiting class and a 3-star commitment.
On3 is the only recruiting site that rates Jaquel Holman as a 4-star prospect and the only one that considers him a linebacker. He is expected to begin his South Carolina career as a linebacker.
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North Carolina product Taeshawn Alston is a 3-star composite prospect. On3’s composite ranks him as the 552nd in the country, 13th in North Carolina, and the 50th EDGE. He is 10th in the class.
On ESPN, Alston is a 3-star, 18th in his state, and No. 91 among defensive ends. He is No. 16 in the class in ESPN’s estimation.
Alston is a consensus 3-star. Three of the four major recruiting services consider Alston a defensive end/EDGE, but Rivals lists him as an outside linebacker, the position he likely will play with the Gamecocks.
An in-state quarterback, Cutter Woods is an On3 industry 3-star. He is the No. 686 nationally, 16th in South Carolina, and 40th overall among quarterbacks. Because of those numbers, he is the No. 12 commitment in the class according to On3.
ESPN views Woods as the 18th-best player in the Palmetto State and the 37th-best quarterback in the country. Woods is ESPN’s 17th-ranked player in the class and a 3-star recruit.
All four services rank Woods as a 3-star prospect.
Ranked by some outlets as a corner and by others as a safety, Christopher Hatfield is an On3 composite 3-star. The industry rating lists Hatfield as the No. 1146 national prospect, No. 125 in Georgia, and No. 99 among safeties. That is good for 19th in On3’s assessment of South Carolina’s commitments.
Hatfield is ESPN’s 114th-ranked Georgia product and the No. 96 cornerback in the nation. Because of that, ESPN considers him 18th in the USC class.
Hatfield is a consensus 3-star product.
Jupiter, Florida tight end Preston Douglas is No. 1126 nationally, 149th in Florida, and No. 62 among tight ends in On3’s industry rankings. The On3 composite 3-star possesses the 18th-highest rating in the Gamecocks’ class.
ESPN’s No. 19 South Carolina football pledge, Douglas is the No. 174 prospect from Florida and 44th-ranked tight end (but that is only among in-line/h-back tight ends, not y-receiver type tight ends).
Douglas is a 3-star prospect according to all major publications.
Kohl’s Kicking handles special teams players differently than the mainstream recruiting sites. According to Kohl’s, though, Max Kelley is a 5-star kicker and a 4.5-star punter. Those numbers are good for 11th nationally among kickers and 40th in the country among punters.
Kohl’s Kicking handles special teams players differently than the mainstream recruiting sites. According to Kohl’s, though, Kyler Farrow is a 5-star long snapper and No. 3 in the country.
