Former Gamecock QB Collin Hill lands NFL opportunity
Former South Carolina quarterback Collin Hill is signing with the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent.
It’s been a long road for Hill to get a shot at a career in the NFL. The former Dorman High School standout signed with Colorado State but suffered three torn ACLs in his time with the Rams, starting parts of three seasons across four years.
Hill played at South Carolina last season as a grad transfer, following former coach Mike Bobo from Colorado State to Columbia. He beat out Ryan Hilinski in the preseason and started eight games before freshman Luke Doty took over as the starter at the end of the season.
Hill completed 59.1% of his passes for 1,411 yards and six touchdown passes.
“I definitely wish we were more successful and I learned a lot,” Hill said of the 2020 season. “I was grateful for the opportunity. It was a weird year with COVID but I was glad to come home and play my last year here.”
At South Carolina’s on-campus pro day, the 6-foot-4 Hill ran a 4.89 in the 40-yard dash and had 33 ½-inch vertical leap. He also was able to throw to former teammate Shi Smith and Kiel Pollard, among other receivers there at pro day.
Hill recently told The State he just wants to get his foot in the door with an NFL team and prove his worth after all of the injuries and obstacles he has encountered during his college career.
“I have a different perspective. I don’t take things for granted,” Hill said. “I have to sit back and watch with all the injuries at times. When you do have the opportunity to get out and play, it is still so much fun. That is obviously still why I am still doing it and kept coming back. I definitely went through a lot, but it is worth it and I love the game.”
South Carolina Gamecocks 2021 NFL Draft picks
Round 1, Pick 8: Jaycee Horn, DB, Carolina
Round 3, Pick 103: Ernest Jones, LB, LA Rams
Round 6, Pick 204: Shi Smith, WR, Carolina
Round 6, Pick 227: Israel Mukuamu, DB, Dallas
Gamecocks undrafted free agent signings
Collin Hill, QB, Cincinnati
Adam Prentice, FB, Denver
Sadarius Hutcherson, OL, Tampa
This story was originally published May 1, 2021 at 8:10 PM.
