South Carolina's Texas A&M depth chart

Brison Williams to cornerback finally seems real

If, like me, you thought the notion of Brison Williams playing cornerback was mostly an idle threat, it might be time to reconsider. For the first time, the senior defensive back is listed at the top of the depth chart at cornerback, supplanting former walk-on Sidney Rhodes (phew).

Of course, how Williams performs in this new role will be of great interest. At 5'11, 208 pounds, Williams is still stockier than most cornerbacks. During the 2013 season was often photographed with something of a belly protruding from beneath his jersey -- an admirable quality, to be sure, but not one often found among cornerbacks.

The decision to move Williams is doubtless made easier by South Carolina's depth at his previous position, strong safety. Chris Moody and J.J. Marcus each logged significant playing time in 2013. Perhaps the biggest surprise in this reshuffling is that Moody's fall camp performance would seem to have been strong enough to vault him over Marcus, a redshirt senior.

Matulis injury leads to reshuffling of offensive line

Considering the string of injuries Mike Matulis fought through to work his way back into the starting lineup, the news that he might miss all of 2014 with a knee injury is a punch to the gut. But the good news for South Carolina is that there is plenty of offensive line talent to go around in Columbia. Cody Waldrop slides over from center to take over starting right guard duties. (No word yet on if this will require him to forfeit his status as a Rimington Award watch list member.)

At center, Clayton Stadnik, who split starting duties with Waldrop in 2013, finds himself in a battle with the ascendant Will Sport. The OR separating Stadnik and Sport is one of the biggest surprises of the preseason. The former two-star prospect (Sport) appears to be a legitimate threat to unseat the other former two-star prospect (Stadnik).

Seven freshmen make their debut appearance on the two-deep

Shaq Davidson, Terry Googer, Deebo Samuel, Chris Lammons, Wesley Green, Bryson Allen-Williams, and Al Harris, Jr. are each making their first appearance on a South Carolina depth chart. The three receivers are, as expected, buried behind several more experienced pass-catchers. Allen-Williams is in a similar situation at linebacker, though he's expected to earn early playing time as a BOB (hybrid outside linebacker/defensive end in the Gamecocks' new 3-4 defensive package).

The cornerbacks, though, are being thrust into the spotlight on day one. Long-held suspicions were confirmed when Al Harris, Jr. was named a starting cornerback. Despite his NFL bloodlines, few thought Harris would beat out Lammons and Green for a starting spot in week one when the Gamecocks' signed their star-studded cornerback class in February.

Other changes

Senior offensive lineman Cody Gibson moves from backup tackle to tight end. At 6'7, 278 pounds, one would assume that he means to take over the role of Gargantuan Blocking Tight End previously occupied by Mason Zandi.

Most South Carolina fans had Kaiwan Lewis penciled in as the Gamecocks' starting middle linebacker for the next two seasons, but T.J. Holloman had something else in mind. Holloman and Lewis split starting duties in 2013, with Lewis coming on strong toward the end of the season.

Not pictured

The following players were listed on South Carolina's preseason depth chart but were excluded from the Texas A&M depth chart: Devin Washington, DJ Park, Gerald Turner (moved from defensive end/linebacker to fullback), Mike Matulis (injury), Jamari Smith (injury), Ali Groves, and Brendan Nosovitch (position change).

Offense

Defense

Special Teams