How many South Carolina transfer portal signees rank in the top 20 at their positions?

South Carolina football coach Shane Beamer and his coaching staff have secured a strong transfer portal class this winter. The Gamecocks have addressed almost every position group, adding depth (both immediate and future) and, in some cases, potential starters for the 2025 edition of the team.

While every player in the transfer class has a path to an important role on the team, let’s take a look at the ones most highly regarded by the recruiting industry.

*To read about the entire transfer portal class (both additions and exits), click here.*

Quarterback Air Noland

Overall: 46
Positional Rank: 9

Air Noland spent one season at Ohio State but transferred to find a better fit for himself. He found one in Columbia, and he will be LaNorris Sellers’ backup in 2025 before battling for the starting job if Sellers heads to the NFL.

Noland didn’t play at Ohio State this fall but was a high 4-star prospect in the high school class of 2024. He was an All-American and threw for over 10,000 yards and 100 touchdowns during his high school career.

LaNorris Sellers is the starting quarterback at South Carolina. Noland will compete for the backup job this fall. However, early in 2024, the Gamecocks utilized backup Robby Ashford in occasional situations. There is a world in which Noland has similar packages created for him, though, he is not quite the runner Ashford or Sellers are.

Because of his redshirt last fall, Noland still has four years of eligibility remaining.

Defensive Back Brandon Cisse

Overall: 66
Positional Rank: 8

South Carolina native Brandon Cisse has returned home to the Gamecocks after spending his first two years out of high school with the NC State Wolfpack. Among players expected to play this season, he is the highest-rated transfer addition in the class according to On3’s industry ranking.

As a starter when healthy, Cisse played both outside corner and slot nickel in Raleigh. The majority of his snaps did come on the outside, however. He can cover, and he is a willing tackler.

Cisse is expected to compete for a role in the two-deep at corner, nickel, or both. A former ACC Rookie of the Year, he has a real chance to force his way into the starting lineup. If he wins the job at nickel, Jalon Kilgore could slide back to his original safety position.

Because he never redshirted, Cisse has three years to play two seasons of football.

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Running Back Rahsul Faison

Overall Rank: 76
Positional Rank: 7

Redshirt senior Rahsul Faison is taking advantage of the NCAA’s handling of junior college eligibility to spend one last year of college football with the Gamecocks. While the third-ranked incoming transfer in the On3 industry ranking (behind Air Noland and Brandon Cisse), On3’s player ranking (without the weighted average from industry competitors) views Faison as the top portal player in USC’s class.

The 6’0″, 215-pound back from Utah State rushed for nearly 1200 yards last season on 6-yards-per-carry efficiency. He also caught 22 passes in 2024 en route to his All-Mountain West selection.

Faison will battle for the starting running back role in Columbia this year. The Gamecocks have several quality backs on the roster, so there could be a “by-committee” approach if one rusher doesn’t emerge over the others. Though Rocket Sanders was the lead back in 2024, the “next three” players on the depth chart (Oscar Adaway, Jawarn Howell, and Juju McDowell) combined for 136 touches.

As mentioned previously, Faison has just one year of eligibility remaining.

EDGE Jaylen Brown

Overall Rank: 123
Positional Rank: 17

Jaylen Brown was a high 4-star prospect in the class of 2024. Following one year at Missouri (one in which he was a reserve), he will join the South Carolina football program.

Brown wasn’t part of Missouri’s starting lineup last fall, but he was a major part of their future plans. The Tigers did not want to see him go, and his coaches have spoken highly of him.

The defensive end room is a bit of a question mark for USC. The roster has quality players for defensive ends/outside linebackers coach Sterling Lucas to work with, but he will spend much of this offseason trying to figure out who is capable of starting with Freshman All-American Dylan Stewart (and replacing Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner Kyle Kennard). Brown has the talent to be in the middle of that battle.

Because he didn’t redshirt in 2024, Brown has four years left to play three seasons.

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Defensive Tackle Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy

Overall Rank: 170
Positional Rank: 12

A former 5-star prospect in the class of 2022, Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy arrives at South Carolina looking for a fresh start. Despite not seeing much action at Texas A&M, the talent is undeniable, hence the strong ranking.

Injuries put Brownlow-Dindy behind the proverbial eight-ball in College Station. The most significant came when he tore his ACL in the Under Armour All-American Game. He missed virtually all of 2022 with the knee injury and had some other bad injury luck in both 2023 and 2024.

If he can bounce back healthy, though, the Florida native is a good player. Very athletic for a defensive tackle, Brownlow-Dindy has impressed the Carolina coaching staff since arriving on campus. He will battle for a spot in the two-deep with the 2025 Gamecocks.

Because of a medical redshirt and traditional redshirt, GBD should have three years of eligibility remaining.

Interior Offensive Lineman Rodney Newsom

Overall Rank: 184
Positional Rank: 14

Rodney Newsom has bounced around a bit during his college career, but he arrives to the South Carolina football program at the top of his game. He earned some All-Conference USA recognition at Western Kentucky last year.

Following stops at Memphis and Itawamba Community College, Newsom figured things out at WKU. The big fella started

Despite being part of the high school class of 2020, the “Covid redshirt,” a traditional redshirt, and the NCAA’s handling of former junior college athletes could give Newsom two more years of eligibility. Western Kentucky listed him on their 2024 roster as a redshirt sophomore.

*All rankings come from the On3 Industry Rankings

**In addition the names mentioned above, transfer portal player rankings from 247Sports and Rivals also are high on cornerback Myles Norwood (Ball State), interior offensive lineman Boaz Stanley (Troy), linebacker Justin Okoronkwo (Alabama), and interior offensive lineman Nick Sharpe (Wake Forest).

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