Zack Bailey brings size, strength, motor to Gamecocks

Zack Bailey is big and strong. Some might call the offensive lineman from Summerville nasty – in a football sense, of course.

Now a freshman at South Carolina, Bailey is not one to brag on himself too much.

“I’m not going to say I’m the greatest,” he said. “There are people who are easily better than me. I’m good, but there are things I need to work on physically and mentally. I’m decent. I work my hardest.”

Bailey was ranked the No. 4 player instate for the 2015 class and one of 10 four-star newcomers for the Gamecocks. He was a state champion as a senior in the shot put.

He expects summer workouts and preseason camp to present physical and mental challenges.

“I’d like to try and fight for a starting job,” Bailey said. “If it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. I’ll understand. I’ll be a freshman. I’ll just be a workhorse.”

Height/weight: 6-5, 330

Stats: As a senior, 17 pancake blocks and 37 knockdowns. He graded out for the season with a 79 percent average

Rating: Four-star prospect, according to 247Sports Composite

▪  Played left guard for the S.C. team in the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas and is expected to be a guard at USC

▪  Was one of five finalists for the state’s Mr. Football award

▪  Wants to be a police officer and plans to study criminal justice at USC

▪  “I think I’ll stay at guard. They could move me. That’s fine. I prefer to stay at guard, but I don’t mind if they switch me over to tackle. I’ll just have to learn and take it step by step.”

▪  “I like coach (Shawn) Elliott a lot. I’m going to work every single day, and those few days when I’m going to be tired and don’t want to do stuff, he’s going to force me to do it. And at the end of the day, it’s for my better good.”

▪  The Bailey family moved from Washington when Zack was in middle school as part of the Boeing company’s expansion into the Palmetto State. “When I was living in Washington, all I did was play video games, sit on the couch and eat potato chips,” he said. “I wasn’t real active. I came here and my whole world changed for the better. The mentality here is a lot different than Washington. It’s what made my career.”

Offensive line coach Shawn Elliott: “Great feet, good motor, strong, physical, looking forward to having him come in and be a part of our football team and putting him in the fire early.”

Barton Simmons, 247Sports, while at the Shrine Bowl: “Has performed like one of the top prospects at the event. The 6-5, 315-pounder has been working at offensive guard primarily and his mass, strength and punch has been unmatched. We just haven’t seen Bailey get beat much at all. Particularly as an interior guy that won’t have to play in space on the outside, Bailey looks like a big-time SEC lineman.”

Rivals: “Packs an unbelievable punch when delivering blocks in space. As far as his strength, he knows how to use it to his advantage, especially as a run-blocker. He’s strong enough that once he gets locked onto a defender it’s basically over, and it will be rare for him to come up against many players bigger or stronger than him, even in the SEC.”

Dwanye McLemore

This story was originally published June 22, 2015 at 9:24 PM with the headline "Zack Bailey brings size, strength, motor to Gamecocks."