South Carolina defensive back O'Donnell Fortune signs deal with Garnet Trust

South Carolina redshirt junior cornerback O’Donnell Fortune has signed an NIL deal with Garnet Trust, the official NIL collective of South Carolina.

There had been rumors about whether or not Fortune would return to Columbia for his fifth season but this news likely confirms he is back.

Over his four-year Gamecock career, Fortune totaled 61 tackles, four interceptions, and 10 passes defended. He appeared in 31 total games, starting in 12 of them.

Fortune emerged as a starter in South Carolina’s secondary following the departures of Cam Smith and Darius Rush last season. He collected 39 tackles, two interceptions, eight passes defended and one tackle for loss in 11 games (including 10 starts). His fourth-quarter interception against Jacksonville State helped seal a 38-28 win for the Gamecocks on Nov. 4.

However, he spent time on the sidelines following two separate suspensions for a “violation of athletic department policy this season. He missed the first half of the Gamecocks’ matchup against Texas A&M and both halves of the team’s contest against Kentucky.

The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder has one year of eligibility remaining.

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A former three-star prospect, the Sumter (SC) High School graduate signed with South Carolina as part of the 2022 class.

The On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average of the four major recruiting media services, ranked as the No. 733 overall prospect in his class, and the No. 12 prospect in South Carolina.

O’Donnell Fortune South Carolina Bio

*2023 Spring Defense Most Improved Award

Fourth-year player who looks to gain the consistency where he can be relied upon at the cornerback position… also a candidate for a special teams role… has appeared in 20 games with one career start… recognized with the Most Improved Award for the defense during the spring of 2023.

2022 (Redshirt Sophomore)
Appeared in nine games including a start in the season finale against Notre Dame in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl… credited with 16 tackles including 13 solo stops… logged a pair of pass interceptions and forced one fumble… set a career high in tackles against Georgia with four… notched two tackles, his first career interception and first career forced fumble in the win at Vanderbilt… returned an interception 100 yards for a touchdown in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl against Notre Dame… the return tied for the second-longest in school history and for the longest since 1997.

2021 (Redshirt Freshman)
Appeared in eight games… recorded three tackles… credited with two of his three stops against Auburn… recovered a fumble at Georgia.

2020 (Freshman)
Enrolled in January and went through the abbreviated spring drills… began the spring working at safety but was moved to cornerback… saw action in each of the final three games of the season… credited with three tackles, all coming in the season finale at Kentucky… redshirted.

HIGH SCHOOL
Graduated from Sumter (S.C.) High School mid-year and enrolled at South Carolina in January 2020… played both cornerback and safety… also handled punt and kickoff returns… logged 42 tackles with five tackles for loss and three interceptions as a senior… the Fighting Gamecocks posted a 10-1 record in 2019, falling in the second round of the Class 5A state playoffs… named first team all-state by the South Carolina coaches… selected to the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas… as a junior in 2018, he led Sumter with five interceptions along with 48 tackles, three tackles for loss and one fumble recovery… collected 84 career tackles with eight tackles for loss and eight interceptions… coached by Mark Barnes… also played basketball and competed on the track & field team in the sprints and jumps… Rivals considered him the 13th-best player in the Palmetto State… ranked as the 11th-best player in South Carolina, the 57th-best safety in the country and No. 747 overall in the 247Sports Composite.

PERSONAL
O’Donnell Omari Fortune was born Sept. 8, 2001… is pursuing a degree in services management.

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