'This is the place for me': 2026 commit Gavin Byrd details what stood out about South Carolina

Amid a major football weekend, South Carolina baseball had an important visitor in town last week. 2026 prospect Gavin Byrd was in Columbia to check out the program and all it had to offer.

Almost immediately, he was enthralled with everything he was seeing. Something about the Gamecocks just felt right.

“We got up there Thursday night. Coaches met us and took us to the hotel. We toured everything Friday and it was just like, instantly, I just felt like this is the place for me,” Byrd told GamecockCentral.

Before making the trip from Lakeland, Florida to Columbia, Byrd had a few more planned visits to take to see other schools. The primary programs interested in him included Florida, Georgia Tech, Texas, USF, Duke, Wake Forest and Miami.

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But after his visit to South Carolina, Byrd had no interest in taking those other visits. He had already seen everything he needed to see. He just wanted to commit to the Gamecocks, and that’s what he did.

After taking his visit last Thursday, Byrd waited a few days and officially committed to South Carolina on Sunday afternoon.

Byrd’s conversations with the new coaching staff went well. He specifically mentioned some of what he spoke to associate head coach/hitting coach Monte Lee about.

“Listening to him talk hitting, that’s something important. That was a huge thing for me. I need to go somewhere where they have a very good hitting coach, and I’m going to be able to work with and just really develop as a hitter,” Byrd said. “As we all know, hitters hit. Coach sat down with me and kind of just explained some of his philosophies about hitting. And in my mind, this makes perfect sense.”

When Byrd was on his visit, he also had the opportunity to check out the team’s practice, where he got to interact with some current players who are, like him, from Florida.

“KJ Scobey, who’s a freshman this year, he’s from McKeel, which is right across the road from where I play. So, I actually got to play him last year when he was a senior, and we actually ended up beating him. So that was pretty fun. Just talking trash a little bit with him, that was cool,” he said.

“And then Ethan Petry, he played in the same travel ball organization. I talked to him previously, so me and him talked a lot. It was good to just get his feedback on everything and what South Carolina has done for him as a player and as just a person, overall.”

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Byrd, who doesn’t graduate from high school until 2026, will join the Gamecocks as a middle infielder and play either second base or shortstop. He’s been playing on the varsity level at Lakeland Christian (FL) since eighth grade and has done nothing but produce.

In 60 career games across three seasons, he’s hit .376 with seven homers and 49 RBI in 181 at-bats. He considers himself to be “an aggressive hitter” and has proven to be able to hit anywhere in the lineup.

“I’m always ready to hit. I want to hit. I’m aggressive at the plate. I mean, if they want me, they want me, but I’m there to swing and drive in runners,” Byrd said. “In the past summers and stuff, I’ve usually batted in the one hole, just to kind of get the offense going. But I’ve got moved to kind of more of an RBI guy and driving runs in. And that’s been awesome. I drove in a lot of runs this spring, actually broke the record for Lakeland Christian, my high school, last year for RBIs total.”

It’s much of the same for him when he’s out in the field on defense. He likes to think he plays with an aggressive mindset.

“My range is, I think it’s something that’s a big part of my game,” Byrd said. “There’s not much balls in my mind I can’t get to and just make a play on.”

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As of right now, South Carolina is starting to bring in some nice pieces for its 2026 recruiting class, which features Cameron Jackson, Parker McGee, Walker Cox, Aaron Dierks and Jackson Robinson.

“I’m sure we’re going to be getting talking here soon,” said Byrd, who admitted he hasn’t gotten the chance to officially meet the others in his class yet. “But yeah, no, from what I’ve heard from the coaches, Coach (Terry) Rooney, is that it’s already a pretty special class.”

However, Byrd isn’t the only middle infielder the Gamecocks have recruited. In addition to the others already on the current roster, Jackson and McGee are also listed as shortstops, according to PerfectGame.

It may seem like a bigger challenge for Byrd to see the field when he gets to Columbia for good. But that’s okay with him. He’s all for it.

“I’ve always competed, I’ve always worked, and I’m all for competition and stuff,” Byrd said. “I’m confident in my ability. I’m going in freshman year ready to play. Wherever they want me, I’ll play. But no, I’m all for competition. I’m not worried about that. Those guys are great, and it’s going to be a fun competition.”

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