‘A knack for making plays.’ How Jayden Sellers earned first start vs. Alabama
There’s a new Sellers on the block.
South Carolina football has consistently struggled on offense throughout the 2025 season. But last week against Alabama, it seemed a bit more explosive. Offensive coordinator Mike Shula’s unit put up 333 yards — the second most in a game this season — against the Crimson Tide defense.
Head coach Shane Beamer noted that the team simplified its playbook before the game, but that wasn’t the only change. The Gamecocks also put in a new starter at wide receiver: freshman Jayden Sellers.
“When my name was called, I was just prepared,” Sellers said.
Sellers didn’t record a single reception through the first six games of the season. That changed Oct. 18 against Oklahoma, when he set a career-high in snaps (31) and caught six passes for 57 yards. Sellers set another career high the following game against Alabama with 36 snaps and was the third starting receiver on the depth chart.
Through his last two games, Sellers now sits at nine catches for 95 yards, or 10.6 yards per catch, on the year. He’s made a case to keep his snap count up through USC’s last four games of the season. Beamer said getting onto the field in the first place came from Sellers’ production in practice.
“He just loves competing and having fun, and when the ball’s in his hands, good things happen. It’s very natural for him,” Beamer said. “He just has a knack for making plays.”
Sellers biggest play of his career so far came on Saturday against Alabama. The Gamecocks faced a 3rd and 12 with a blitz coming in hot. LaNorris Sellers, Jayden’s older brother, found his sibling for a 22-yard gain into the red zone. USC finished the drive with a field goal to bring the game within one point.
“I was real hype, because it’s ‘Bama,” Sellers said of his reaction after his catch. “‘Bama’s got a name from Nick Saban and stuff like that. Doing it versus ‘Bama was crazy.”
While earning the starting spot was because of Sellers’ own effort, having a brother as the team’s starting quarterback certainly helps. Beamer said there’s an “excitement” between the two, and the brotherly connection seems to help LaNorris Sellers find his younger brother on passing plays.
“Jayden basically plays like the slot in our offense ... but sometimes you felt like LaNorris never threw that ball to the slot on that particular play,” Beamer said “Then all of a sudden, last week, Jayden’s in there, and it’s going to that guy every time, and we’re like, ‘Hold up now.’”
Sellers competes with five other freshman receivers for snaps, and is one of just two rated less than four stars out of high school. He doesn’t worry about snap counts or competition around him, he said, and just tries to stay ready for when his name is called again.
“I was really like, short on confidence [to start the season], because, you know, all those boys, four stars, five stars, but like, really, everybody is just the same person,” he said. “Stars and stuff don’t really mean nothing. Do you. Be you. Don’t worry about nobody else.”
