How a hometown Gamecock connection helped bring latest recruit to USC’s class
Despite hailing from the same school — Lee County High in Georgia — Caleb McDowell and Jammie Robinson never played together.
By the time McDowell was playing for the Trojans in 2019, Robinson was off to USC, breaking into the starting secondary as a freshman. But that didn’t mean they don’t know each other, or that a part of Robinson’s place in Columbia didn’t have some kind of influence on McDowell’s choice.
“It certainly was something when they made the offer,” Lee County coach Dean Fabrizio said. “He had visited and I believe stayed with Jammie some during the season. Visited a bunch of games, stayed with him some. That was a school he’d always really liked.”
McDowell had been committed to N.C. State, and Fabrizio guessed USC was the only school that could’ve pulled him away.
The coach explained that McDowell had grown close with Robinson’s younger brother, who was a senior for the Trojans last season. The Robinsons made trips up to Columbia for games, and McDowell came along.
“He went up with Jammie’s family,” Fabrizio said, “watched Jammie play.”
He added, “Jammie definitely played a role in (McDowell’s) recruitment. He’s very well respected here.”
McDowell committed to the Gamecocks earlier this week, becoming the first running back pledge of the 2021 class. He was primarily used on defense last season, helping fill the spot Jammie Robinson left, but will be a full-time tailback in the fall.
Jammie Robinson is coming off a year in which he broke into the starting lineup as a true freshman and ended the year on the freshman All-SEC team. He was one of the Gamecocks’ most reliable defenders and made 62 tackles with five pass break-ups.
Fabrizio said there’s a lot of pride around Lee County for what Robinson was able to do. He admitted he wasn’t sure if Robinson would play that kind of role as a college freshman, but knew he had that ability.
The lesson Robinson seemed to take from Year 1: the wear and tear from the SEC grind.
And even when he heads back to south Georgia, he’s always trying to do a little more.
“He’s one of those kids that he comes home, gets home, and ... he’s always asking me to open the weight room,” Fabrizio said. “He’s out there running cone drills. That the thing about Jammie is his work ethic. You know he’s gonna be a special player.”
This story was originally published June 14, 2020 at 5:15 AM.
