South Carolina might not be done adding to its roster in 2021
National Signing Day wrapped up for South Carolina football on Wednesday with four new players officially joining coach Shane Beamer’s programs.
The Gamecocks might not be done adding players to the roster.
Wednesday’s four additions join a recruiting class that already had nine other signees plus seven transfers, for a group of 20. Add in the four scholarships from last year that will be counted toward this class, and South Carolina is up to 24 of the 25 maximum slots it is allowed to fill.
“With our scholarship situation, we’ve still got the flexibility to add some pieces and people to the equation going forward if we need to,” Beamer told reporters Wednesday. “Obviously spring practice is going to be big for us to see where we are as a program, our personnel that’s in the building right now, and what we may need and and have to go attack here, going forward in recruiting and then immediately with some potential guys to add to the roster this upcoming season as well.”
While there is technically only one spot left for the Gamecocks to fill, they could theoretically add other pieces and count them toward the 2022 class, Though that would, of course, limit USC come next signing day.
Navy transfer cornerback B.J. Gibson of Marietta, Georgia indicated Wednesday night via Twitter that South Carolina had offered him a scholarship. Gibson (6-4, 209) played in one game in 2019 and in five games in 2020.
Beamer seemed to indicate Wednesday that more transfers out of the program might cause him to bring in more talent to help right away in 2021. Carolina has already had nine players from the 2020 roster transfer away this offseason, though there hasn’t been a departure for a while now.
“You hope as a program, you don’t have any more attrition and you keep everybody in place, but the fact of the matter is with college football now, that may not be the case,” Beamer said. “And so we’ll take situations as they arise, but I think really the main thing for us right now is just develop this football team that we have. And then after spring practice, if we say, look, we got to add some more depth at that position, more competition at that position, we’ll certainly attack that.
“If just a fantastic football player regardless of position has an interest in coming to South Carolina, then we’ve got the flexibility to pursue that as well.”
While there’s still the possibility of more players joining the program, Beamer projected confidence that the Gamecocks aren’t desperate for more pieces.
“I could not be more excited about the players in this program right now and the way that they’re working. I mean, we’ve got a really good group of young men that are hungry, their work ethic is fantastic,” Beamer said. “I absolutely love coming into this building every single day and being around them and spending time with them. ... If this is the 2021 South Carolina football team and it does not change at all, we don’t add anybody else to it, fantastic. Let’s roll, and I can’t wait to play ball with them.”
This story was originally published February 4, 2021 at 9:27 AM.
