Coveted Virginia defender tight with Gamecocks: ‘I consider them family’
Four-star defensive end Kelvin Gilliam of Highland Springs, Virginia named his top 10 earlier this week, and South Carolina was firmly entrenched in the short list.
That’s no surprise as Gilliam’s history with the Gamecocks dates back to his 10th-grade year. He has built an uncommonly strong relationship with Gamecock head coach Will Muschamp and assistant coach Kyle Krantz. He may be closer to the USC staff than any other, but will that be enough for the Gamecocks to land one of the highest-rated prospects on their recruiting board?
“They are very, very, very high on my list,” Gilliam said, “just because of the contact we have been in. Also, SEC football, a great head coach. I think they are really going to do something special this upcoming year.”
Also on the short list are Oklahoma, Penn State, Minnesota, Texas, Florida, Virginia Tech, LSU, Cal and Kentucky. The Gamecocks would rank behind most of those programs in terms of recent and overall gridiron success, so they have to overcome their history in recruiting Gilliam with the promise of a bright future, and having him be a major part of it.
“Just for them being a high priority for me and them,” Gilliam said. “Talking to Coach Muschamp a lot now. Coach Krantz, we talk frequently, sometimes every couple of days, sometimes every day, which is great. Just seeing how I can be in their defense is just great. Me and Coach Muschamp have a great relationship. We talk about things other than football, how my day is going, just things like that. I consider them family at this point.”
Gilliam has yet to visit USC but will take an official visit there if he’s able to. He wants to take his other official visits as well before he makes his decision, but that’s all dependent on the NCAA and the recruiting calendar. Currently a dead period is in place through the end of August. He’d like to make his decision later in his season, but it could come as early as the end of summer.
Gilliam was a major force last season with 37 solo tackles, 45 total tackles, 17 tackles for loss and seven sacks. He’s seventh nationally among weakside defensive ends in the 247Sports Composite rankings, and the No. 4 prospect in Virginia.
Recruiting news and notes
▪ Marion defensive end T.J. Sanders is now ready to announce his commitment. After sending out tweets stating his commitment was coming soon, and asking for someone to produce a photo edit for him quickly, Sanders told us he’s looking at a “few days” before making his announcement. USC was the first to offer and has been on him hard. Some of his other offers are Wake Forest, West Virginia, Syracuse, Coastal Carolina, Tennessee, Duke, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Virginia, NC State and East Carolina.
▪ TE Jalen Shead of Olive Branch, Mississippi included USC in his top ten. The othes are Florida State, Southern Cal, UCF, Alabama, LSU, Ole Miss, Kansas State, TCU and Arkansas.
▪ LB Naquan Brown of Virginia Beach, Virginia, who had an early offer from USC, committed to LSU.
▪ DE Dallas Turner of Ft. Lauderdale, who had offers from both USC and Clemson, committed to Alabama
▪ WR Christian Lewis of Pleasant Grove, Alabama, who also had an offer from USC, committed to Kentucky.