Where South Carolina football sits in recruiting rankings following huge Landon Duckworth commitment

On Friday, South Carolina landed a massive commitment from four-star quarterback prospect Landon Duckworth. A top 100 overall recruit, Duckworth is the third pledge for the Gamecocks this week, joining four-star Tennessee offensive lineman Kamari Blair and in-state athlete/defensive back Triston Lewis. Duckworth picked USC over finalists Auburn, Ole Miss, Florida State, and North Carolina.

Duckworth’s recruitment was a wild ride, as the Jackson, Alabama product first committed to South Carolina back in 2023 before backing off from that pledge. Though other programs pushed–most notably Ole Miss and Auburn–the Gamecocks landed their top target.

Let’s take a look at South Carolina football recruiting and its place in the team recruiting rankings and the individual rankings of the players committed in the class of 2026.*

*All rankings will come from the Rivals Industry Ranking, a weighted composite from the rankings from Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN*

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Prior to Duckworth’s announcement, South Carolina sat at No. 21 in the country in the team recruiting rankings. Shane Beamer’s group had just 12 players publicly pledged so far in the class. Now, with No. 13 in the boat, things are trending upward. As of this writing, USC has moved up four spots to No. 17 nationally.

The Gamecocks are one of just two teams in the top 40 nationally with fewer than 14 commitments. Because of that, it is unsurprising that USC is higher in average player rating, sitting at No. 12 in the country.

The team’s No. 17 overall ranking puts the Gamecocks 8th in the SEC. One of the Southeastern Conference squads ahead of South Carolina (Tennessee) trails USC in average player rating.

Last year, the Gamecocks landed the No. 18 class in the country, the program’s third-straight top 20 group. The 2025 class also ranked No. 11 in the SEC.

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DT Aiden Harris
No. 74 overall
No. 5 nationally among defense linemen
No. 5 in North Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Harris is the highest-rated commit in the Rivals Industry Ranking and is a consensus four-star prospect. He fills a big South Carolina position of need at defensive tackle.

QB Landon Duckworth
No. 85 overall
No. 8 nationally among quarterbacks
No. 5 in Alabama
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Duckworth was the first commitment in South Carolina’s 2026 long ago. Now, after a winding road that included a decommitment, he is the most recent pledge. A consensus four-star prospect, the dual-threat quarterback is considered a top 10 national quarterback by all three major recruiting services. He is the highest-rated player in the class, according to 247Sports.

S J’Zavien Currence
No. 90 overall
No. 8 nationally among safeties
No. 2 in South Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

According to two other major recruiting services, Currence is the highest-rated player in the class. He is a consensus four-star prospect.

OL Zyon Guiles
No. 171 overall
No. 12 nationally among interior offensive linemen
No. 4 in South Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Rivals’ player rankings have Guiles right on the verge of five-star territory as he is the highest-rated player in the Rivals300 and the No. 1 overall interior offensive lineman in the country. Guiles is also a consensus four-star prospect.

WR Sequel Patterson
No. 229 overall
No. 40 nationally among wide receivers
No. 5 in South Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

A recent reclassification from the class of 2027, Patterson could have been a four-star prospect at wide receiver or cornerback. He will play receiver for the Gamecocks. Before his reclassification, he was a top 100 prospect in the Rivals Industry Ranking for the ’27 cycle.

OL Kamari Blair
No. 274 overall
No. 22 among offensive tackles
No. 7 in Tennessee
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Blair is an athletic offensive tackle rated as a four-star prospect by two of three major recruiting services. His pledge extended South Carolina’s streak of landing multiple blue chip offensive linemen to four classes in a row.

TE Jamel Howse
No. 280 overall
No. 13 nationally among tight ends
No. 7 in South Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Howse is a four-star prospect in two of the three major recruiting rankings, including earning top 200 honors from one of them.

DT Noah Clark
No. 312 overall
No. 34 nationally among defensive linemen
No. 16 in North Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Clark ranks as high as 126th nationally according to another outlet’s four-star evaluation. The big fella will be a nose tackle for South Carolina, filling a major need on the USC roster.

EDGE/LB Andrew Harris
No. 344 overall
No. 36 nationally among EDGE players
No. 18 in North Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

South Carolina likes Harris at linebacker, rather than EDGE. If his recruiting rating didn’t change, he would rank as the No. 25 linebacker nationally. As things stand, he is a four-star according to one major recruiting outlet.

DB KJ Johnson
No. 463 overall
No. 43 nationally among cornerbacks
No. 16 in Alabama
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

South Carolina’s coaching staff believes Johnson could play corner, safety, or nickel at the next level. He is a consensus three-star prospect but is just one recruiting point away from four-star status according to two services.

LB Keenan Britt
No. 469 overall
No. 38 nationally among linebackers
No. 19 in Alabama
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Previously listed as an EDGE, Britt will come join the Gamecocks as a linebacker. One recruiting service considers him a four-star player (at EDGE) in the 2026 cycle.

OL Anthony Baxter
No. 1200 overall
No. 108 nationally among interior offensive linemen
No. 14 in South Carolina
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Baxter, a high school teammate of J’Zavien Currence, is a consensus three-star prospect and the longest-tenured pledge in the class.

ATH/DB Triston Lewis
No. 1283 overall
No. 63 nationally among athletes
No. 17 in South Carolina
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Lewis earned a Gamecock offer and committed on the same day. At 6-4 and 200 pounds, he is an intriguing prospect who likely will be a defensive back for South Carolina.

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