Crootin’ Notebook: More on South Carolina’s 2018 numbers

By now most people are aware of the limited spots remaining in the South Carolina Gamecocks’ 2018 recruiting class. As things stand right now, there are only five scholarships remaining for this cycle.

With the staff still heavily pursuing at least ten (probably more) prospects, it is fairly unclear right now as to how the class will fill out, if some commits will be asked to “look around”, etc. Last week I discussed six guys Will Muschamp will certainly want to get into the fold. Picking up from that conversation, here are a few more prospects that are still on the Gamecocks’ radar.

Dax Hollifield

Hollifield has been hard to read throughout his recruitment, declining to ever name a leading school, but South Carolina is certainly in good shape here. The No. 5 ranked inside linebacker in the country continues to name playing time as his top-priority, which will be next-to-guaranteed in Columbia with Skai Moore and Bryson Allen-Williams graduating after this season.

Hollifield has a top five of Virginia Tech, North Carolina, South Carolina, Stanford and Florida State. He plans to take official visits to all five and commit in December. How the Gamecocks’ defense performs this fall could go a long way in determining their final position in this one.

Dylan Wonnum

Due to being the brother of South Carolina’s starting BUCK, DJ Wonnum, the younger Wonnum has been largely projected to commit to the Gamecocks. However, the 4-star offensive tackle told SEC Country’s Benjamin Wolk earlier this week that he is, “actually leaning toward Auburn.” He cited their workouts and facilities as two aspects that stood out to him over the rest of the SEC schools.

This is obviously not great news for USC, but by no means does it indicate Wonnum is a lock to Auburn. He has a December decision date planned and is a big part of offensive line coach Eric Wolford’s plan moving forward. He is also teammates with wide receiver prospect Josh Vann, so if he commits soon that could potentially help South Carolina’s position.

KJ Henry

Most fans seem to have written off the possibility of landing Henry long ago, but multiple reports have indicated that the Gamecocks’ stance with the 5-star edge rusher has been severely underestimated. That isn’t to say that South Carolina is a leader or that they don’t have obstacles to hurdle, but a good season could put them in a very strong position.

Henry currently has a top five of Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, South Carolina and Virginia Tech. He plans to take all five of his official visits then commit in time to early-enroll in January.

Jovaughn Gwyn

Gwyn is another one that has been notoriously hard to read, doing few interviews and giving little information when he does. In July he named a top three of Duke, NC State and South Carolina, but the thought is that this is really a battle between the Gamecocks and Wolfpack.

Gwyn had originally planned to commit before the start of his senior season, but it is now looking like he will wait until sometime in the season as he has had some difficulty coming to a decision. At 6-foot-3, 290 pounds, he is ranked as the No. 2 overall offensive lineman in North Carolina.

Saivion Smith

We haven’t covered much on Smith to this point, but the former 5-star recruit and LSU defensive back told SEC Country that South Carolina has a “50-50 shot” at landing his commitment. Now, I wouldn’t read into that too terribly much, as Alabama is his only other offer on the table right now.

After transferring from LSU after his freshman season, Smith went the JUCO route and will play for Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College this fall.

Steven Gilmore

The brother of one of the greatest Gamecocks of all-time, Gilmore has been considered a shoo-in for South Carolina for a while now. However, with the class filling up, many are wondering if the 5-foot-10 (I’ve seen him listed anywhere from 5’9” to 5’11”), 150 pound cornerback will still be a take when he announces his commitment on September 17th. At this point, Muschamp has not made any indication either way, though it will be his final decision.

Size is a concern here, but Gilmore also has offers from Georgia, Louisville and Maryland, so there is obviously something about his game coaches like. We will provide any new information on this as it comes out.