Jake Bentley on Deebo decision: ‘He knew how I felt. I wanted him back’

South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley had been in constant conversation with wide receiver Deebo Samuel about his potential future.

So when Samuel announced he will return to USC in 2018, Bentley wasn’t particularly surprised.

But he was pleased.

“He knew how I felt,” Bentley said Tuesday. “I wanted him back. So I kind of had a feeling. It’s definitely big for us to have him back.”

Bentley admitted he hadn’t directly pressed Samuel, not wanting to pester him in a trying time. Samuel had seen his work to come back from a broken leg undone by a separate lower leg injury.

Samuel was looking like one of the top play-makers in the country for the first three games, with 250 receiving yards and six total touchdowns, before a broken bone in his leg sidelined him.

He’s in line to return to a deep receiving group in 2018.

“He’s already talking about throwing in the offseason,” Bentley said, “getting ready to go.”

This story was originally published November 7, 2017 at 11:58 AM with the headline "Jake Bentley on Deebo decision: ‘He knew how I felt. I wanted him back’."