Gamecocks ‘definitely at the top’ for JUCO tackle. 2 receiver targets decide this week
Time at home in New Orleans for offensive tackle Caleb Etienne of Butler Community College (Kansas) during the pandemic has meant some good home cooking. And with that, his weight has jumped up 20 pounds to 335 pounds on his 6-foot-9 frame.
Etienne hopes to arrive at Butler on July 28 so he can prepare for the season and show recruiters why he’s regarded the No. 2 offensive tackle prospect in junior college according to 247Sports.
South Carolina offensive line coach Eric Wolford offered Etienne on April 9 and continues to pursue him for a possible third offensive lineman in the class.
“I talk to Coach Wolford a lot, almost every day,” Etienne said. “He’s my guy. He just lets me know how much I’m considered a big-time player around there. He said once everything clears up, for sure we are going to set up a visit. He’s been telling me about how they take care of their players and make sure they are straight. They treat everybody like family.”
Etienne has a top four at this point of USC, Oregon, Texas Tech and Houston. He said Wolford has explained to him how his size and skills would fit in with what he runs on his offensive line.
“He said I could be a part of them because of the way I play. They have the same thing as how I play on the field, so he said I would be a good asset as a left tackle,” Etienne said. “They are definitely at the top for sure. I’m really open up to a lot of schools but I’m starting to get close to narrowing it down pretty soon though.”
Some of his other offers are Mississippi State, Arkansas, East Carolina, Oklahoma State, UAB, UCF and Ole Miss. Etienne committed to Ole Miss in high school but signed with Nichols State. But he didn’t quality and enrolled at Fort Scott Community College (Kansas) for the 2019 season.
Etienne wants to take official visits to his top four. He has one set up with Texas Tech for his off week Sept. 12. He does not expect to make a decision until later in his season or after the season.
Receivers set commitment dates
Two South Carolina receiver targets are set to announce their commitments this week.
▪ Derwin Burgess of Riverdale, Georgia has set Thursday for his commitment announcement, with Georgia Tech, Indiana, Tennessee, Florida State and Coastal Carolina the other schools in contention.
Burgess said his commitment announcement will be a simple Tweet sometime during the day. According to MaxPreps, last season Burgess had 28 catches for 463 yards and five touchdowns. He’s rated a 3-star prospect and the No. 98 recruit in Georgia for 2021 by the 247Sports Composite. Both Crystal Ball predictions from 247Sports as of Tuesday morning are for the Gamecocks.
▪ Keon Coleman of Opelousas, Louisiana was going to take his official visits before deciding, but he’s now set Saturday night (July 4) for his commitment date. He is down to three schools: South Carolina, Kansas and Oklahoma. The Gamecocks have held their spot with Coleman despite the change at receivers coach from Bryan McClendon to Joe Cox.
“It started out with Coach McClendon, and he went off to Oregon, then they named Coach Cox the the receivers coach, and we already had that connection, so it just got even stronger once he got the receivers job once Coach McClendon left,” Coleman said. “He and Coach [Mike] Bobo can get a receiver the ball in any situation with the various route trees they have for receivers. “They are heading up. I’m very serious about them. They are on the list for a reason.”
Yardage after catch is a big thing with Coleman. Last season he caught 35 passes for 1,143 yards and 22 touchdowns. He averaged nearly 33 yards per catch.
Coleman also is a big-time basketball prospect who averaged 26 points per game last season. He plans to play both sports in college and has talked with Gamecock basketball coach Frank Martin about that. But he said his decision will be based more on the football side of things compared to basketball.
All the 247Sports Crystal Ball predictions for Coleman were for Oklahoma as of Tuesday morning.
News and notes
▪ Longtime USC safety target Myzel Williams of Deltona, Florida committed to Mississippi State on Monday. What was the deciding factor for Williams? “The relationship with the coaching staff, life after football and level of competition.” USC offered Williams in December. He made an unofficial visit in January and sat down with Will Muschamp in his office. After that visit, he named the Gamecocks his favorite.
▪ More upcoming announcements by Gamecock targets: Jully 11 for CB Khyree Jackson; July 12 for DE George Wilson.
▪ USC linebacker target Jordan Poole of Oakboro, North Carolina is pushing back his commitment date. He had set it for July 1. He’s down to USC, Virginia Tech and NC State.
▪ USC running back target Jaylin White of Dothan, Alabama plans to drop his top 10 Tuesday afternoon.
▪ USC tight end target Bryson Nesbit of Charlotte was offered by Virginia Tech.