Muschamp wants more D-linemen; one nearby player has some interest

South Carolina football coach Will Muschamp made it clear again on Sunday at his pre-camp press conference: he needs quality defensive linemen for his program, big ones who can stuff the run and athletic ones who can rush the passer.

For his 2018 class, Muschamp has two defensive tackles and one defensive end commitment. Sunday defensive line coach Lance Thompson welcomed lineman Demar Donaldson (6-foot-4, 285 pounds) of Boynton Beach, Fla., and Palmetto Prep in Columbia. Time will tell if Donaldson can be one of those linemen Muschamp so craves.

“I’ve built a relationship with the coach Thompson, we’ve been speaking all summer,” Donaldson said. “He’s the one who invited me to the school. We actually had a meeting with him in his office. Basically, we’re staying in touch. He’s going to be watching me this season and wants to bring me over to the campus some more for practices and games, and he wants to come and check out a couple of my home games.”

Donaldson said Thompson wants to see how well he does the fundamental things at the position, but he’s already got one major item in his favor.

“He definitely likes my size, kept emphasizing that you can’t teach size and that players at my position are hard to find,” he said. “Basically this season, he’s going to be looking for me to be physical and aggressive.”

Donaldson said schools are just starting to learn about him and he’s optimistic offers will come his way this fall. He’s at Palmetto Prep to complete a core course he needs to eligibility and he should be able to get that and move on to college in January.

Notes:

▪  Another Gamecocks target from Georgia is set to announce his college decision Monday at 3 p.m. Safety Jonathan Gipson of Hoschton, Ga., has been favoring USC with Indiana and Tennessee also in his final three. He visited USC this month for the Spurs Up Cookout with his parents. Even after making his commitment, Gipson plans to take other official visits this fall.

▪  Clemmons, N.C., defensive end K.J. Henry of will reveal his final five schools Monday. Henry has been working with a top ten list of Clemson, USC, Penn State, Georgia, Ohio State, Pitt, Alabama, Louisville, Virginia Tech and Charlotte. He will take his official visits to the five schools he announces Monday.

▪  Dutch Fork defensive back Bryce Thompson has successfully completed the academic work he needed to be able to commit on July 30, which was his goal, but he decided not to move forward then. He said earlier this month he had already made up his mind on his decision. USC, NC State and Virginia Tech were the schools on his list. He decommitted from the Hokies in June after attending a USC camp

▪  South Carolina is in the top 10 with defensive end Dennis Briggs Jr. of Kissimmee, Fla. The others are Florida, Oregon, Miami, Georgia, Pitt, NC State, Tennessee, Ole Miss and Florida State.

▪  Ashley Ridge right- hander Josh Church changed his commitment from USC to the College of Charleston.