A recent history of South Carolina standouts at the NFL combine
Editor’s note: The State’s Ben Portnoy is at the NFL Scouting Combine this week.
The NFL futures of three South Carolina products will be on full display this week.
Former Gamecocks Kingsley “JJ” Enagbare, Kevin Harris and ZaQuandre White will take center stage in Indianapolis during the NFL Scouting Combine that begins Tuesday. Each has varying degrees of hype surrounding their entrances into pro football, but the week gives them a chance to show out for scouts from every organization.
So how have South Carolina’s most recent NFL-bound players fared at the NFL combine? Before the current South Carolina trio works out in the heart of the Midwest this week, here’s a look back at a few of those USC standouts from years past.
DL Jadeveon Clowney
Rd. 1, No. 1 overall to the Houston Texans in 2014
South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney had the looks of an athletic freak during his college career. He proved it, albeit in briefly, in Indianapolis during the 2014 rendition of the annual scouting event.
Clowney’s combine was under a microscope almost immediately when he put up an underwhelming 21 reps on the bench press, just one more than 5-foot-10 South Carolina cornerback Victor Hampton recorded the same week. The former South Pointe High standout also chose not to participate in a handful of drills.
Where Clowney shined, though, was in the 40-yard dash. His 4.53-second official time was best of any defensive lineman in the class and backed up what scouts had seen on tape.
He’s gone on to productive seasons in the NFL with the Houston Texans, Seattle Seahawks, Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns.
CB Jaycee Horn
Rd. 1, No. 8 overall to the Carolina Panthers in 2021
South Carolina fans might’ve maligned Jaycee Horn’s overall interception numbers during his time in Columbia, but he did plenty to evolve into a top-end NFL prospect.
Horn tied for the fifth-fastest 40-yard dash time of any defensive back in the 2021 draft class with a 4.39-second run. His 41.5-inch vertical and 133-inch broad jump both ranked sixth among players at his position at the combine.
Horn’s selection at No. 8 overall marked the highest a USC defensive back had been selected since Stephon Gilmore went No. 10 overall to the Buffalo Bills in the 2012 draft.
The son of longtime St. Louis Rams star Joe Horn, Jaycee broke his foot as a rookie after just three games with the Carolina Panthers.
RB/WR Deebo Samuel
Rd. 2, No. 36 overall to the San Francisco 49ers in 2019
Deebo Samuel has evolved into one of the NFL’s most exciting young talents. His showing at the combine certainly helped his draft stock.
Samuel notched a 4.14-second 20-yard shuttle, the fifth-best time among wide receivers. His 39-inch vertical jump also ranked sixth among receivers.
Beyond his on-field showing, Samuel earned headlines in Indianapolis for his massive hands. The Inman product’s mitts measured 10 inches from tip of the thumb to tip of the pinkie, the ninth-biggest among receivers and larger than 25 of the offensive linemen at the event in 2019.
Samuel just capped one of the more historic seasons in NFL history, notching 1,405 yards receiving and eight touchdowns. He added another 365 yards and eight touchdowns rushing, helping the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game. Samuel was earned a Pro Bowl nod and was named a first team All-Pro by the Associated Press.
DL Javon Kinlaw
Rd. 1, No. 14 overall to the San Francisco 49ers in 2020
That Javon Kinlaw is included at all on this list is a bit misleading. Kinlaw didn’t work out at the NFL combine in 2020 as he rehabbed from knee tendinitis, but he did go to Indianapolis to meet with teams and reporters.
The Goose Creek native’s story is equal parts heartbreaking and enthralling. He went from being homeless in his youth to playing junior college football at Jones College in Ellisville, Mississippi before landing back in his home state at South Carolina.
Kinlaw flashed the demeanor that would make him a first-round selection of the 49ers throughout the week.
The former Gamecocks defender started 12 of his 14 appearances as a rookie in San Francisco, but was limited to just four contests in 2021 after undergoing season-ending knee surgery.
TE Hayden Hurst
Rd. 1, No. 25 overall to the Baltimore Ravens
Hayden Hurst is one of three ex-South Carolina players drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft over the last four years (Kinlaw and Horn are the others). A big piece of his high selection was his combine performance.
Hurst finished tied for third among tight ends at the 2018 event with a 4.67 40-yard dash, matching Oklahoma’s Mark Andrews and following Penn State’s Mike Gesicki and N.C. State H-back Jaylen Samuels.
The former minor league baseball player also earned rave reviews for catching every ball thrown his way during the gauntlet drill — an on-field pass-catching workshop designed to see prospects move through varying routes on the playing surface at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Hurst would be the first tight end selected in the 2018 NFL Draft and the only one taken in the first round. He was chosen 17 picks ahead of Gesicki, the next-highest drafted player in the position group.
How to watch the NFL combine
What: 2022 NFL Scouting Combine
When: Tuesday, March 1 through Sunday, March 6
Where: Lucas Oil Stadium — Indianapolis, Indiana
TV: NFL Network and ESPN
