Freshman OL JP Vonashek leaves team

Chris Clark of GamecockCentral.com is reporting that offensive tackle JP Vonashek has parted ways with the Gamecocks football program. A member of the 2013 class, Vonashek was likely headed for a redshirt season despite being listed in the two deep on at least one occasion this year.

Here's what Clark had to say on Columbia station 107.5 The Game:

"The details are a bit sketchy right now, I wouldn't want to say too much about it, it's just a situation where he had some off the field issues that needed to be resolved, so he's not going to be with the program any longer."

Listed at 6'6", 283 lbs., Vonashek was rated a three star prospect out of Saint Marys, GA. He held some major offers that included Florida State, Georgia, Miami, North Carolina, Ohio State and Tennessee. While this certainly isn't ideal for South Carolina's depth at tackle, they are not without Tackles of the Future: Mason Zandi, DJ Park and Na'Ty Rodgers are all underclassmen listed at tackle (although Rodgers has seen time at guard this season.) And since, it's conceivable that both starting tackles could return in 2014, these young guns would be afforded another developmental year, something on which OL coach Shawn Elliott puts a premium. Still, Clark alluded to the fact that South Carolina has begun pursuing a few JUCO offensive linemen for the 2014 cycle. Whether or not these efforts are directly related to Vonashek's departure is unclear.

Of course the silver lining here is that the coaching staff finds themselves with a scholarship they weren't counting on. [DONS TINFOIL HAT] Is it possible they've been aware of this for a few weeks, prompting the Scarnecchia offer? Also, doesn't The Scarnecchia Offer sound like a Grisham novel? [REMOVES HAT]

Whatever the circumstances, we wish JP the best in his future endeavors, both football and otherwise.