South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori seizes early opportunity
Throughout the off season and fall camp, word around the South Carolina football practice facility was true freshman Nick Emmanwori was going to be someone to look out for.
He wasted no time showing why.
The 6-foot-4 athlete played everywhere on the defensive side of the ball at Irmo High School but has settled down at safety for the Gamecocks.
When RJ Roderick went down early in the game, Emmanwori made the most of his opportunity and shined in South Carolina’s win over Georgia State.
“I’ve been telling you guys about Nick Emmanwori from Irmo and y’all saw that tonight,” Beamer said. “Nick had to be in a lot earlier than what we expected and wow for a true freshman to play like that in game one…excited to watch him continue to get better.”
Emmanwori ended up playing on 65 plays on Saturday night, tying Cam Smith for most of any Gamecock on defense. The closest player after them was Marcellas Dial logging 56.
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Along with the high snap count, Emmanwori also collected three tackles and two stops and two pass break ups.
Though the numbers don’t seem glaring, Emmanwori’s Pro Football Focus grades made him one of the highest-rated players in numerous categories on the Gamecocks defense.
Emmanwori’s total defensive grade of 74.8 was the second highest of any Gamecock. Only Debo Williams’ grade of 78.1 was higher.
Williams and Gilber Edmond were the only two Gamecocks who bested Emmanwori in rush defense grades, though the two combined played 12 less snaps than Emmanwori did. Emmanwori finished with a rush defense grade of 75.5
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In pass coverage, receiver’s Emmanwori was covering only received two targets and both failed to result in a Georgia State completion. Emmanwori’s PFF coverage grade of 73.2 was second only to Dial’s.
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He had a pass deflection in the second half on third down to set up South Carolina’s first blocked punt of the night.
It’s still a bit early to tell but if Emmanwori maintains the success he had against Georgia State throughout the season, he could become a pivotal piece of the South Carolina secondary.
“It just goes to show you how crazy recruiting can be sometimes I mean, I think we beat nobody for Nick,” Beamer said.
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Beamer lumped Emmanwori and fellow Palmetto State native DQ Smith together when it came to winning out on under-recruited local guys. He praised both of them for their standout performances against Georgia State.
“We trusted our evaluations, we knew those two kids were really good football players,” Beamer said.
“Was happy to see them make plays out there tonight and contribute and they’re only going to continue to get better. The moment wasn’t too big for them tonight and that was awesome to see. I mean those guys…they’re football players and I mean that in the sense that they just love to play they love to compete.”
