South Carolina’s confirmed football signees list for 2021
College football’s early signing period officially opened Wednesday, kicking off a three-day stretch in which class of 2021 recruits can make commitments official and sign with programs. While the traditional “National Signing Day” still takes place in February, the early period is when most of the action happens — more than 80% of prospects in last year’s class signed in December, per CBS Sports.
At South Carolina, though, things looked a little different. New coach Shane Beamer has been on the job less than two weeks and hasn’t hired any coordinators or assistants. With so much uncertainty, it’s not surprising that the Gamecocks only have nine players committed in the class of 2021. Of those, seven signed Wednesday — last year, that number was 17.
South Carolina’s class also lost a member Wednesday morning. Wide receiver Derwin Burgess out of Riverdale, Georgia was announced as a signee by Georgia Southern. The 5-foot-11, 177-pounder made his pledge to USC in July.
Before Wednesday, South Carolina’s class ranks 92nd nationally and 14th in the SEC according to the 247Sports composite ratings. All the star ratings cited below are based off the 247Sports composite, which factors in all major networks’ rankings.
JonDarius Morgan, OL
Three stars | 6-foot-4, 305 pounds | Birmingham, Alabama
With an offer sheet including the likes of Arizona State, Georgia Tech, Louisville and Syracuse, Morgan was one of a crush of commits to pick South Carolina in late June and early July this past summer. His recruitment was relatively under-the-radar for a long time before his film picked the 300-pounder up a slew of offers, with South Carolina the first from the Power 5 ranks.
Nicholas Barrett, DL
Three stars | 6-foot-3, 329 pounds | Goldsboro, North Carolina
Barrett didn’t get to play his senior year as North Carolina canceled its high school football season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a junior, however, the big man put up 70 total tackles and 15 sacks in just 11 games. He’s the largest player currently committed to the Gamecocks and will provide a lot of size in the middle of the USC’s talented defensive line corps.
Caleb McDowell, RB
Three stars | 5-foot-8, 180 pounds | Leesburg, Georgia
McDowell joins a South Carolina backfield featuring one of the SEC’s top rushers in sophomore Kevin Harris and one of the most highly touted backs in last year’s class in freshman MarShawn Lloyd. But the 47th-ranked back in his class, who also held offers from Purdue, NC State, Indiana and Colorado, is no slouch in his own right. He’s a speedy, explosive player who contributes on offense, defense and special teams — in his senior regular season, he carried the ball 105 times for 800 yards and caught it 10 times for 140 yards, with 16 touchdowns combined.
O’Mega Blake, WR
Three stars | 6-foot-1, 188 pounds | Rock Hill, South Carolina
The top-rated receiver recruit in the class, Blake was offered by 17 Power 5 programs, including the Gamecocks. A tall, speedy prospect, he went for more than 1,300 all-purpose yards and nine touchdowns as a junior, including 800 and six through the air. As a senior, he took over as his team’s quarterback and helped guide them to a 6-3 record.
Sam Reynolds, WR
Three stars | 5-foot-8, 170 pounds | Alabaster, Alabama
An explosive athlete with a 4.51 40-yard dash to his name, Reynolds is a burner who put up big numbers in his senior season for a 14-0, state title-winning squad. Between running and catch the ball, he has more than 750 all-purpose yards with 13 touchdowns, averaging 5.6 yards per rush and 17.9 yards per catch.
Jordan Davis, OL
Three stars | 6-foot-5, 300 pounds | Fairburn, Georgia
The first offensive lineman to join the recruiting class, Davis picked the Gamecocks over offers from Georgia Tech, Kansas and Akron. As part of a 7-3 squad his senior season, Davis helped block for a rushing attack that put up 283.9 yards per game and 5.9 yards per carry, leading to 28 touchdowns on the ground.
Marcellas Dial, DB
Three stars | 5-foot-11, 177 pounds | Woodruff, South Carolina
The lone junior college committ of the class at the moment, Dial is currently at Georgia Military College, but he played his high school ball in the Palmetto State, at Woodruff. He’s one of the top 50 JUCO recruits in the country and top 10 at his position. He hasn’t played this year due to COVID-19 restrictions, but in his first year at GMC, he broke up five passes and intercepted one in 11 games.
Colton Gauthier, QB
Three stars | 6-foot-3, 214 pounds | Dacula, Georgia
The Gamecocks’ lone signal caller in the class, Gauthier comes from Hebron Christian Academy and is the 23rd-ranked pro-style passer in the class, per 247Sports. He passed for more than 2,000 yards in each of his last three high school seasons, racking 61 touchdowns in that span against 34 interceptions, with a 54.7% completion rate.
Not signing until February
T.J. Sanders — defensive lineman, Marion, South Carolina
JonDarius Morgan — offensive lineman, Birmingham, Alabama
Left class
Derwin Burgess Jr. — wide receiver, Riverdale, Georgia, signed with Georgia State on Wednesday morning.
This story was originally published December 16, 2020 at 7:34 AM.
