What to watch for as these South Carolina Gamecocks compete at 2022 NFL combine
South Carolina spring practice is only three weeks away, but a trio of Gamecocks will hit the field in Indianapolis next week with full-time jobs on the line.
Defensive end Kingsley “JJ” Enagbare and running backs Kevin Harris and ZaQuandre White make up the USC contingent that will work out at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
What can we expect from that group in front of slews of professional scouts? Let’s take a look.
Which Gamecock has the most to prove?
There’s an argument for all three players here. I’ll roll with Kevin Harris.
Harris was an absolute bulldozer during the COVID-shortened 2020 college football campaign. He led the Southeastern Conference in rushing during the regular season. His 15 touchdowns also ranked second among all tailbacks during that 10-game slate, behind only Alabama’s Najee Harris.
That Harris shined during the 2020 season, though, casts a shadow of mystery over where NFL scouts might project him.
The 2021 campaign was anything but simple for the Georgia native. Offseason back surgery forced him to miss all of preseason practice. Harris didn’t return to contact until literally his first touch in a Sept. 11 win over East Carolina.
He showed out in spurts. His 16-carry, 128-yard effort against Florida looked closer to the Harris of old. The 182 yards he notched in South Carolina’s dominating 38-21 Duke’s Mayo Bowl win looked the part of a back who could go on to a long NFL career.
So what’s next?
The NFL Draft Bible slots Harris as the No. 15 rusher in the class. CBS Sports doesn’t have Harris ranked among its top 15 tailbacks. He’s also not listed among Pro Football Focus’ top 28 halfbacks.
Harris shined at his peak, but a banged-up 2021 muddies the picture. The combine is a massive opportunity for the former South Carolina star to play himself into a draftable position.
South Carolina running backs take center stage
We talked plenty about Harris above, but there’s a good bet White improves his draft stock as much as any runner in the class in Indianapolis.
White earned rave reviews for his efforts at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama last month. Couple that with his skillset as a pass-catcher out of the backfield, and he’s a guy scouts could fall in love with in the later rounds.
The biggest difference between White and Harris is their mileage. Harris recorded 358 carries over his two-plus seasons at South Carolina. White, by contrast, only had 104 touches at USC and another 137 carries during his lone year at Iowa Western Community College. That’s more than 100 fewer touches than Harris at the college level.
White started his career at Florida State, where he was moved to outside linebacker before transferring to Iowa Western. He finished his one non-redshirt season in Tallahassee with 22 tackles in 11 games. Given his background as a defender, there’s a decent bet he can latch onto a squad in a special teams role if it doesn’t happen as a tailback.
PFF and CBS sports both rank White as the No. 11 halfback/running back in the 2022 draft class.
According to Scout Inc.’s 2021 big board, the No. 11 tailback in its pre-draft rankings was Missouri’s Larry Rountree, who was selected in the sixth round with the 198th overall pick.
White isn’t a surefire early-round selection and the NFL’s devaluation of running backs hurts him some. But the high praise he earned at the Senior Bowl indicates he should receive plenty of attention at the combine.
How soon will Enagbare be drafted?
While Harris and White project as likely Day 3 picks — or undrafted free agents — Enagbare’s projections are all over the place.
The former four-star recruit entered the 2021 season as a likely first-round pick. He wasn’t quite as dominant as preseason prognosticators thought he might be, finishing the year with 42 tackles and 2.5 sacks.
Enagbare should easily still be the highest-drafted player in this class out of South Carolina, but it’s a bit murky as to where his name will actually get called.
The 2022 NFL Draft class is loaded with quality pass-rushers. PFF ranks Enagbare as its seventh-best edge defender and the No. 35 player overall. That slots him behind Aidan Hutchinson (Michigan), Kayvon Thibodeaux (Oregon), George Karloftis (Purdue), Travon Walker (Georgia), David Ojabo (Michigan) and Jermaine Johnson (Florida State).
The Athletic’s Dane Brugler has the former South Carolina defender in a similar spot as PFF at No. 38 on his most recent “big board” released Feb. 15.
ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. doesn’t have Enagbare ranked among his top-10 defensive end prospects, but rates him the No. 5 outside linebacker in the draft as of Jan. 24.
The Ringer’s Danny Kelly only included his projected first-round picks in his big board released Feb. 2, but Enagbare isn’t among the five edge rushers he projected as Day 1 selections.
Enagbare figures to test well in Indianapolis and is personable in a way that should lend itself to the interview process. That said, it feels like a safe bet — at this point — that he’ll fall into someone’s lap on the second day of the draft rather than the first round.
South Carolina football recent draft history
The on-field results haven’t exactly been the best the last five years in Columbia, but the Gamecocks have steadily churned out NFL-caliber players.
South Carolina has had a player selected in the first round in three of the last four drafts. If Enagbare climbs enough, he’d make it three years in a row that USC has someone chosen on the draft’s first day.
The Gamecocks have only missed out on having a single player drafted twice since 2000 (2001 and 2017). Barring something completely unforeseen, that won’t happen in 2022.
Here’s a look at a handful of the most prominent South Carolina players drafted in recent years:
CB Jaycee Horn — Rd. 1, No. 8 overall in 2021 (Carolina Panthers)
LB Ernest Jones — Rd. 3, No. 103 overall in 2021 (Los Angeles Rams)
DT Javon Kinlaw — Rd. 1, No. 14 overall in 2020 (San Francisco 49ers)
WR Bryan Edwards — Rd. 3, No. 81 overall in 2020 (Las Vegas Raiders)
WR Deebo Samuel — Rd. 2, No. 36 overall in 2019 (San Francisco 49ers)
TE Hayden Hurst — Rd. 1, No. 25 in 2018 (Baltimore Ravens)
WR Pharoh Cooper — Rd. 4, No. 117 in 2016 (Los Angeles Rams)
RB Mike Davis — Rd. 4, No. 126 in 2015 (San Francisco 49ers)
Key NFL dates to know
NFL Scouting Combine — March 1-7
USC’s on-campus pro day — March 17
NFL Draft — April 28-30
This story was originally published February 24, 2022 at 12:00 AM.
