Tyshawn Russell aiming for improvement, growth ahead of sophomore campaign with South Carolina

For many South Carolina football players, development is not always linear. Tyshawn Russell, who was described as a “late bloomer” during his recruiting process two years ago, is a perfect example of this.

Russell did not focus exclusively on playing at wide receiver until his senior year at Bishop McDevitt (PA) High School. That season, he logged 61 passes for over 1,300 yards and 22 touchdowns.

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But that success did not immediately translate to playing time when he joined the Gamecocks. Russell appeared in 10 games for South Carolina last season, totaling 81 receiving yards on five catches. His production was fairly spread out, too — four of those catches came during his first three games, and his fifth came in the team’s final contest of the season against Clemson.

Russell, like many of his Gamecock teammates, is looking to improve his game as he heads into the second year of his collegiate career. And those efforts to improve began this offseason.

One aspect of Russell’s game that he worked on ahead of the 2024 campaign was speed. Russell said, at one point this preseason, he hit 22 miles per hour on one of his timed runs.

He added that he also spent time adding weight to his current 5-foot-11, 195-pound frame, as well as building relationships with his new teammates and receivers coach Mike Furrey.

“Last year, I was kind of little. (I) came in undersized — I was around 170 (pounds). So, these last eight months, I’ve been putting on a lot of weight and muscle. I’ve gotten to about 190, so it’s just been training, getting with the new wide receivers coach, Coach Furrey, coming in. And we’ve got a new wide receiver room,” Russell said. “So, the last eight months, they’ve been good.”

Russell said has quickly developed a strong relationship with Furrey, who has already brought a welcoming presence to South Carolina’s wide receiver room.

“He made it feel like home for all of us in the receiver room. Even if you weren’t in the wide receiver room, he was inviting the whole team to come over. A coach like that shows that he cares about his players,” Russell said. “That felt good, though, to just know you have someone like that as a coach that you can learn on and talk to like a father figure.”

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Furrey and players currently on the Gamecocks’ roster aren’t the only people playing a role in his improvement, though. Russell said he looked up to the team’s veteran wide receivers when he was a freshman last year.

While they are no longer in the South Carolina locker room, they continue to have a lasting impact on Russell, he said.

“We had Xavier Legette, plus Juice Wells, last year. He was hurt. But just being in that receiver room with AB (Ahmarean Brown) and all of them, the veteran receivers, it just motivates me because I’ve seen what they’ve put in (and) the type of work they’ve put in, so it just motivated me to go hard,” Russell said. “I know, next year, I was like, ‘Yes, let’s do it. It’s my shot.'”

Russell said he sometimes finds himself thinking about specific moments from last season to serve as motivation. Or, rather, one moment in particular — the touchdown he scored in his college football debut.

South Carolina’s 47-21 win over Furman on Sept. 9, 2023, provided the team an opportunity to take its young players out for a spin late in the game. That night, LaNorris Sellers, a highly-touted freshman quarterback at the time, also made his first appearance in the Garnet and Black. And Sellers’ connection to Russell was apparent from the beginning.

As the game clock ticked under one minute in the third quarter, the Gamecocks held a commanding 20-point lead. By the end of the quarter, South Carolina’s advantage would grow by another seven points, as Russell streaked down the sideline to catch a pass from Sellers for a 50-yard gain and the pair’s first touchdown.

Dropped it in perfectly 🎯 pic.twitter.com/49qJ4Ix0SL

— Gamecock Football (@GamecockFB) September 10, 2023

Russell admitted he has only looked back on the play a few times, with his reasoning being that, as good of a moment as it was, he’d rather look ahead at what’s to come.

“I don’t really think about it too much, but it was a good moment. A lot of freshmen don’t get a 60-yard bomb down the field…but I try to look past it because it’s in the past now,” Russell said. “I’ve got bigger things coming up for the season. I want to improve, put on a show for you all and help my team win.”

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