Juice Wells named preseason All-SEC by On3
South Carolina star wide receiver Juice Wells continues to land on preseason All-SEC lists and on Tuesday he was named to On3’s team.
Wells joined South Carolina this past season as one of the top FCS transfers and showed no issues adjusting to FBS play. He was a big part of the Gamecocks’ upsets against Tennessee and Clemson to close the season with a combined 20 catches for 308 yards and two touchdowns.
Overall, Wells finished just shy of 1,000 yards on the season to lead South Carolina with 68 catches for 928 yards and six scores. With both him and quarterback Spencer Rattler returning, the Gamecocks have a chance to take another leap forward after finishing 8-5 a year ago.
On3’s preseason list features a “first team” only and Wells was the lone Gamecock player to make the cut.
Two-time defending national champion Georgia leads the way with a total of seven players. LSU, which faced the Bulldogs in the SEC Championship this past season, is right behind them with five as they should once again contend for a conference title. Alabama comes in with three players after a season in which it missed the College Football Playoff for just the second time.
Elsewhere, Arkansas and Kentucky each had two players listed while Ole Miss, South Carolina, Texas A&M and Kentucky all had one.
After a huge first season in Columbia, Wells considered declaring for the NFL Draft but ultimately chose to return for another year, announcing the decision in January.
“It feels good to be back,” Wells said at the time. “But now I know that I have to take on the role of being a leader and definitely try to bring this team up to a good standard, make the standard the best. Basically, I looked at it as, looking at E Doug and Gwyn and J. Brooks and all of them — that was their last year — so my main thing I want to work on is molding the younger guys now.
“If y’all want to win games and y’all want to be a championship team, just start now, as in like the workouts we’re doing now, as in getting everything on time. I’m trying to help mold us into being a disciplined team now, so stuff like this doesn’t have to come up later during the season or in spring ball. I know I have to step up and be a leader.”
You can view the full 2023 preseason All-SEC team, according to On3, by clicking here.
