Deebo Samuel drops the hammer, helps power 49ers to Super Bowl
Deebo Samuel electrified fans at Williams-Brice Stadium with his speed, shiftiness and big play ability. Now, in his rookie NFL season, he’ll have the chance to do so on the biggest stage possible.
The former Gamecock star and his pro team, the San Francisco 49ers, will play in Super Bowl LIV on Feb. 2 after winning the NFC championship Sunday.
Samuel played a key role in the Niners’ playoff win over the Green Bay Packers — he led the team with two receptions for 46 yards and rushed twice more for 43 yards. Twice, he broke off plays of 30 or more yards, including one where he bowled over a defender for a massive gain.
It was yet another impressive performance in a season full of them for Samuel, who was taken in the second round of the NFL draft last April. Entering Sunday, he had played 15 games, starting 11, catching 57 passes for 802 yards and rushing 14 times for 159 yards. He had six total touchdowns, three receiving and three rushing.
Samuel will face off against a former teammate in the Super Bowl — defensive back Rashad Fenton, a fellow Gamecock rookie with the Kansas City Chiefs, won the AFC championship Sunday. This will mark the eighth year in a row that South Carolina football has had a player in the Super Bowl.
Fenton, a defensive back, was selected in the sixth round of the NFL Draft by the Chiefs and has played in 13 games this season for Kansas City, recording 18 total tackles, forcing a fumble, defending four passes and intercepting one. On Sunday, he had three tackles, two solo, while starting in the secondary, helping to shut down Titans QB Ryan Tannehill, who became one of the league’s best quarterbacks over the last half of the season.
South Carolina has had just one other former player make the Super Bowl as a rookie — linebacker Rod Wilson did so in 2007 with the Chicago Bears. Wilson will participate in this Super Bowl as well, as an assistant special teams coach for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Fenton, Samuel and Wilson aren’t the only people with South Carolina roots headed to the Super Bowl — Clemson alums Sammy Watkins (wide receiver), Dorian O’Daniel (linebacker) and Brashaud Breeland (defensive back) all play for the Chiefs, as well as former S.C. State linebacker Alex Brown.
Former Gamecock defensive back Chris Lammons is also on KC’s practice squad.
Former Gamecocks in recent Super Bowls
2020 — Deebo Samuel (San Francisco 49ers) and Rashad Fenton (Kansas City Chiefs)
2019 — Stephon Gilmore (New England Patriots)
2018 — Alshon Jeffery (Philadelphia Eagles) and Stephon Gilmore (Patriots)
2017 — Patrick DiMarco (Atlanta Falcons)
2016 — Darian Stewart (Denver Broncos)
2015 — Lemuel Jeanpierre (Seattle Seahawks)
2014 — Lemuel Jeanpierre (Seattle Seahawks) and Sidney Rice (Seahawks – injured reserve)
2013 — Emanuel Cook (Baltimore Ravens) and Chris Culliver (San Francisco 49ers)
2010 — Jamar Nesbit (New Orleans Saints)
This story was originally published January 19, 2020 at 9:44 PM.