Ranking the top 5 transfers to play for South Carolina football under Shane Beamer
Since Shane Beamer took over the South Carolina football program in 2021, the Gamecocks have brought in 99 players through the transfer portal — a number that seems staggering until you realize Oklahoma State brought in over 60 transfers … in the last few months.
Coming off a 4-8 finish last year, Beamer and his staff signed 26 transfers, including nine offensive linemen. It seems almost impossible to imagine the Gamecocks having a bounce-back 2026 season without a plethora of its incoming transfers becoming starters and impact players.
Which got us thinking: Who are the five best transfers to have played under Beamer at South Carolina?
5. WR Antwane ‘Juice’ Wells (James Madison) // 2022-23
It has to be almost impossible for any South Carolina fan to appreciate anything Wells did on the football field, considering the way he left USC.
After breaking out in 2022, Wells missed nearly the entire 2023 season with an injury that, at minimum, South Carolina’s coaches were dubious about. Then the season wrapped up, and he bolted to Ole Miss, claiming he didn’t trust that South Carolina had a quarterback good enough to win games.
Let’s just say he’s not getting free drinks if he returns to Columbia.
But his departure fueled so much anger because of what he did in 2022. As Spencer Rattler’s No. 1 option, Wells caught 68 passes for over 900 yards and six touchdowns and was instrumental in the Gamecocks’ upsets of Tennessee and Clemson.
Wells has been the most productive transfer wide receiver at South Carolina since Beamer arrived, and it’s not close.
4. RB Raheim ‘Rocket’ Sanders (Arkansas) // 2024
Sanders was the gem of South Carolina’s 2024 offseason, a sign of optimism and belief in a program that missed a bowl game in 2023.
Nearly a 1,500-yard rusher as a sophomore at Arkansas, Sanders got hurt as a junior and spent most of his first few months in Columbia rehabbing. It was unclear whether South Carolina was getting the 2022 version of Sanders or something much less.
What South Carolina got was its best running back in the Beamer era.
Though he certainly didn’t show the dominance he did in 2022 (he was also running behind a below-average offensive line), Sanders racked up nearly 800 rushing yards, over 300 receiving yards, and found the end zone 13 times.
His game-winning touchdown in the waning seconds of USC’s win over Missouri was one of the indelible highlights of the 2024 season.
3. Edge Kyle Kennard (Georgia Tech) // 2024
In his one season with the Gamecocks, Kennard put together the best season by a South Carolina pass rusher since Jadeveon Clowney.
After four decent seasons at Georgia Tech, Kennard’s game went to another level in Columbia.
He finished the season with 11.5 sacks, 15.5 tackles for loss and three forced fumbles, good enough to win the Bronco Nagurski Trophy — given to the nation’s top defensive player — after the season.
The only thing preventing Kennard from being higher on the list is the fact that he was greatly aided from playing opposite Dylan Stewart.
As Bryan Thomas Jr. proved in 2025, any edge playing across from Stewart is going to have a big year.
2. LB Demetrius Knight (Charlotte) // 2024
Knight would probably be No. 3 if not for what he did off the field.
His leadership and presence in the locker room were continuously mentioned by players and coaches as a key reason the Gamecocks won their final six regular-season games and finished 9-4 — which is even more remarkable, as he was an unknown transfer from Charlotte.
Oh, and he was also one of the most important pieces on a stingy South Carolina defense that became one of the best in the SEC. Knight finished second on the team with 82 tackles while adding eight tackles for loss and a pair of sacks.
He also made perhaps the most consequential play of the season. With Clemson driving — already in-range for a game-tying field goal — Knight dove under a tipped Cade Klubnik pass and sealed the game with an interception.
That 2024 season — South Carolina’s best in over a decade — likely would have been far worse without Knight.
1. QB Spencer Rattler (Oklahoma) // 2022-23
Forget Rattler’s stats for a second.
His transfer from Oklahoma to South Carolina brought hype and validation that was crucial for Beamer early in his tenure — especially a year after the Gamecocks had a revolving door at QB.
Rattler, the former No. 1 QB in America out of high school, left Oklahoma after being benched for Caleb Williams. South Carolina was his perfect second-chance landing spot.
In year one, he led the Gamecocks to eight wins while throwing for over 3,000 yards, a season highlighted by a 438-yard performance against Tennessee.
A year later, despite being sacked over 40 times by a wretched offensive line, Rattler’s stats were even better. He completed 69 percent of his passes for nearly 3,200 yards and 19 touchdowns while throwing just eight interceptions.
