South Carolina Football Recruiting: Gamecocks get verbal from 2016 DE/ATH JJ Givens

The South Carolina Gamecocks added a 2017 recruit to their offensive line earlier in the day. Now, as the annual Gamecock Showcase winds down in Columbia, they've added a member of the class of 2016 to their backfield.

Jaqui "JJ" Givens, a safety/ATH from Mechanicsville (Va.) Atlee, became the Gamecocks' second commitment of the day. He joins 2017 in-state TE Will Register in pledging to play at USC.

Givens is ranked by Rivals.com as the 13th best safety in the state of Virginia and the 41st ranked player at the position in the country. Along with South Carolina, his many offers included Louisville, Michigan, Oklahoma, Ole Miss and Virginia Tech. Depending on how things play out in the backfield in 2015, the Gamecocks have a versatile player that might push for a little playing time in 2016.

Givens is the fifth 2016 recruit to verbal thus far for the Gamecocks, a class that features four-star wideout Bryan Edwards and dual-threat QB Brandon McIlwain. From the sounds of things, there may be more to come: O-lineman Will Putnam (from the Charlotte area) are among the players that have mentioned the possibility of committing either today or somewhere close to it, so stay tuned.