Shane Beamer happy to have Brady Hunt in the tight end room
Ball State transfer portal tight end Brady Hunt announced last weekend that he would play for South Carolina after all.
A December commit to the Gamecocks’ portal class, Hunt had privately decommitted from South Carolina intending to commit to Texas A&M before reversing course and enrolling at Carolina.
The 6-foot-6, 249-pounder provides a unique skillset that South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer is happy to add to the tight end room.
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“We first saw him last season getting ready to play Tennessee in 2022, they had played Ball State earlier in the year and we saw Ball State on video and we were like, who in the heck is this Ball State tight end?” Beamer said last month. “And we didn’t know it at the time, but a year to almost two years later, he decided to go in the portal.
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“Pete (Lembo) had a connection to the family, obviously from Pete’s time at Ball State, but he was a high school quarterback, a basketball player that kind of grew into a tight end. You see that athleticism on tape as well. So he’s a guy — losing Trey Knox — we liked that (tight end) room, but we’re young, Josh Simon returns and then we’re young with Connor (Cox) and Nick Elksnis and Reid Mikeska. We’ve been able to get some experience in there. Very pleased about him.”
Hunt missed the 2023 season for the Cardinals, but turned in a stellar 2022 campaign at Ball State. That season, he caught 46 passes for 498 yards and 5 touchdowns.
“They told me Josh Simon’s coming back and he’s going to play quite a bit,” Hunt told GamecockCentral following his initial commitment. “But they said that they needed another guy that likes to live in 12 personnel. Kind of somebody to take over what Trey was doing last year. And I think they see some things in me where I can be a three-down guy. I can be sufficient in the run game and pass game. So, like I said, just think it’s a good fit for me and the type of player that I am. Especially with your OC being a tight ends guy and your head coach being a tight ends guy. Feels like a good place for me to be.”
