The Final Cockdown: #69 D.J. Park

D.J. Park

RS sophomore

Offensive Tackle

6' 4" /  332 lbs.

Dillon, SC

Recruitment:

4 stars, 13th overall offensive guard in the 2013 class

Offers from Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, East Carolina, Florida, LSU, N.C. State, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest

College Career:

A heavily recruited signee from schools across the Southeast, Park was redshirted his freshman year, a practice that has become pretty standard for Gamecocks offensive linemen. In 2014, Park started the season buried on the depth chart, but saw some time on the field later in the year as injuries mounted.

2015 Outlook:

The offensive line was gutted coming in to spring, with Brandon Shell, Mike Matulis, Cody Waldrop, Mason Zandi, Malik Young, and Clayton Standik missing portions or all of practice. The coaching staff stressed the upside of all those guys missing time in that it gives some of the less experienced players a chance to get a lot of extra work in. Park, along with fellow linemen Donnell Stanley and Alan Knott, didn't let that opportunity go to waste. Park split the Everyday Effort Award with Stanley in the spring and has been noted as a guy with great size and the type of work ethic and intensity that coaches value so highly.

With so many players coming back from injuries, Park may not see a whole lot of time on offense right out of the gates, but you can expect him to get some minutes on special teams right away. He's in a great position to move up the depth chart as the season progresses, especially if the starting offensive line struggles with protection this fall.