South Carolina lands commitment from in-state, D2 All-American tailback
South Carolina has a new tailback in the fold.
Newberry College transfer running back Mario Anderson Jr. announced his commitment to USC on Sunday afternoon.
Anderson was one of nine finalists for the Harlon Hill trophy, honoring the Division II player of the year. He rushed for 1,560 yards and 19 touchdowns on 211 carries in 2022. Anderson also notched more than 100 yards in nine of 10 games this fall — including efforts of 246 and 243 yards in games against Cartawba and Lenoir-Rhyne, respectively.
South Carolina is in need of running backs following MarShawn Lloyd’s unexpected entrance into the transfer portal, while Wake Forest transfer Christian Beal-Smith is out of eligibility.
The Gamecocks also lost do-it-all tight end Jaheim Bell, who has since committed to Florida State, to the transfer portal. Bell finished second on the team in carries and yards rushing, shouldering the bulk of the rushing load with Lloyd missing three games due to a thigh contusion over the final month of the season.
Newberry finished the season 9-2 and won its conference, but was narrowly left out of the Division II playoffs.
Gamecocks add two more from portal
South Carolina’s tight end room received major boost on Sunday. Florida transfer Nick Elksnis announced his commitment to USC via Twitter following two years in Gainesville.
He appeared in nine games during his two years at Florida, mostly on special teams, and did not record a catch during that time. Elksnis visited Columbia this week and was at the Gamecocks’ first bowl practice on Thursday.
South Carolina is incredibly thin at tight end heading into the offseason following the departures of Jaheim Bell (Florida State) and Austin Stogner (Oklahoma). Traevon Kenion also previously announced he was stepping away from football, while Nate Adkins will exhaust his eligibility following the Gator Bowl against No. 21 Notre Dame on Dec. 30.
Yale transfer offensive lineman Nick Gargiulo also committed to the Gamecocks.
Gargulo, 6-foot-5 center, was a team captain this season in helping Yale to the Ivy League championship. He appeared in 25 games for the Bulldogs and will be a graduate transfer. He played for head coach Tony Reno at Yale. Reno is the father of USC Class of 2024 quarterback commit Dante Reno.
WR from Pennsylvania commits
South Carolina received a pledge Sunday from fast-rising Pennsylvania wide receiver Tyshawn Russell.
Russell is unranked by 247Sports, but he reported a recent offer from Virginia Tech, in addition to Maine and Central Michigan. The Bishop McDevitt receiver is listed at 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds and spent this past weekend on an official visit at South Carolina. He previously took an official to Virginia Tech last week.
Russell finished his senior season with 61 catches for 1,334 yards and 22 touchdowns, while helping squad to a state championship earlier this month.
The early signing period for December begins Wednesday.
This story was originally published December 18, 2022 at 5:25 PM.
