COACH WILL MUSCHAMP IS QUIETLY PUTTING TOGETHER ONE OF THE TOP RECRUITING CLASSES IN THE COUNTRY.
As of Wednesday, September 28th, South Carolina holds the number seven ranked recruiting class in the nation according to Rivals.com, good for the fourth-best in the SEC behind Alabama, LSU, and Georgia. Bolstered by recent recruits such as 4* receiver OrTre Smith, the top player in the state of South Carolina, and 3* defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw, Muschamp is starting to build back the reputation that South Carolina had of being an elite recruiter during the prime years of the Spurrier era.
During the recruiting drop off in the last two years of Steve Spurrier’s career at USC, Clemson took over recruiting in South Carolina. After nearly a decade of Carolina dominating recruiting the state of South Carolina, Clemson suddenly swept in after Spurrier made the mistake of hinting at a possible retirement. This changing of the guard was the step Clemson needed to go from being second to Florida State in the ACC to nearly knocking off Alabama in the National Championship a year ago. However, South Carolina seems to be making huge strides toward taking back the in-state recruiting crown. Four out of the top five players in the state, according to Rivals.com, are committed to the Gamecocks. The only player in the top five not to have committed yet is 4* safety Davondre Robinson, who 247sports is predicting will end up choosing South Carolina. This means that USC is on pace to land every blue chip recruit out of the Palmetto State. Sure, the talent level in the state is down this year, but turning into a national recruiting power starts with locking down the state.
Not only is Coach Muschamp putting together one of the top classes in the country, he is also targeting recruits that will fit into where the biggest team needs are. The Gamecock receiving core right now and for the past couple of years have had one player who carries that position group while everyone else has very little impact. To help balance the skill level out, Muschamp has landed commitments from two 4* receivers and one 3* and is in the running for multiple other blue chip recruits around the southeast. OrTre Smith, the top recruit in the state of South Carolina should be a huge help in the red zone. According to scout.com, he has really been effective because of his size, strength, and ability to go up and get the ball at its high point. They project that he will probably be molded into a flex tight end who creates serious mismatches against outside linebackers. The other 4* receiver, Shi Smith, should be a solid complement to OrTre in that where Shi lacks in size and strength, he makes up for with his speed and ability to get free after the catch. One of the major things that the Gamecocks have struggled with this season is moving the ball. Once in the red zone, they normally score, but getting into the red zone has been the problem and the lack of receivers that can get open for Brandon McIlwain has been a big reason that this is an issue. Shi Smith is someone that can use his speed and agility to shake free of cover corners and get open and be a target for McIlwain.
Muschamp is also working extremely hard to address another major area of need within the Gamecock roster: the offensive line. This has been the biggest problem for Carolina so far this year. The line can’t generate holes for our talented backs to run up the middle, which is forcing the coaching staff to rely on the speed and elusiveness of AJ Turner to beat linebackers 1 on 1 on the outside, which isn’t something he is always able to do. Because of the line can’t run-block, the coaching staff has been forced to call a lot more pass plays than I feel like they are comfortable with. While McIlwain has protected the ball and not turned it over, he isn’t generating much through the air either. This is because the offensive line can’t protect him. The fact that McIlwain is always under pressure is making him constantly have to throw the ball away and not showcase his talent to make accurate throws down the field. Among the players currently committed to helping revamp the offensive line is TJ Moore, a 4* offensive tackle out of Mallard Creek High School in my hometown of Charlotte, NC. He is heralded for his ability to get off the ball quickly and either get in position to pass-block effectively or get down the field to pick up a block on a linebacker or safety on the second-level. Other 2017 offensive linemen such as Mallard Creek teammate Eric Douglas, and huge 6’6″ 310 lb Milledgeville prospect Dennis Daley should work to drastically improve the depth of the offensive line. I think that with a better offensive line, the South Carolina offense could actually be effective and explosive. Just look at the past few national champions. All of them had some of the best offensive lines in football in the years that they won. Once you have an offensive line, everything else just sort of falls into place. With a reliable line, I truly believe that Brandon McIlwain could be an elite quarterback. He has the arm strength, mobility, and football IQ to be a really good SEC quarterback.
Muschamp’s biggest recruiting strides are being made on the defensive side of the ball. This is where Carolina has really lost out on a ton of in-state recruits, and where Clemson has really gained from Carolina’s losses. However, USC is really pushing to land quality defensive prospects. 4* athlete Jamyest Williams is definitely the prize of this recruiting class. He is the tenth ranked athlete in the class of 2017 and will most likely be an extremely valuable addition to the defense at the corner or nickel position. He has very good instincts and possesses solid strength and toughness. Hopefully, he would be able to harness his elite athletic ability and use Muschamp’s coaching to excel at corner or safety. Additionally, Muschamp’s staff has landed commitments from 4* North Carolina prospect Hamsah Nasirildeen, 3* inside linebacker Sharrod Greene, and 3* defensive tackle M.J. Webb. The arrivals of Williams and Nasirildeen should pay huge dividends for the depth of the secondary in the future. While we do need to improve in the trenches, forcing teams to become one-dimensional by shutting down the passing game would be the ideal situation, but realistically, these two will undergo 3-4 years of Muschamp’s personal coaching which will help them improve greatly in how they cover receivers.
Locking down recruiting in the state of South Carolina will not only do wonders for Will Muschamp’s job security but will also help Carolina catch back up to Clemson on the field. Keeping the Tigers from dominating the recruiting field in South Carolina and reestablishing major pipelines from the Steve Spurrier era, like Mallard Creek High School, will put a major dent in the amount of talent Clemson is able to bring in every recruiting cycle. It is going to take more than just getting the best players in the state for USC to go back to being a SEC East contender, but national recruiting prowess starts with dominating your region, and I believe that Muschamp is doing that at the beginning of his tenure as the head coach of the South Carolina Gamecocks.