The holiday season is here and there are five recruiting targets that the South Carolina football team would love to get to make the holidays oh so sweeter.
The Gamecocks currently have a class of 20 excellent prospects but still quite a few are being courting before National Signing Day in February.
Here are the top five recruiting targets for Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks:
1. Cornerback Chaz Elder (Banneker HS, College Park, GA): Chaz Elder almost pulled the trigger for USC back in August but held off because he wanted to take a few more visits. He has taken official visits to Georgia and USC. He has a Vandy trip scheduled and also one to Arkansas potentially on the horizon. His favorite school is South Carolina followed by UGA and Vanderbilt.
With USC needing depth in its secondary this would be a great recruit to have and grow into a shutdown corner.
Elder says he will make his announcement at the Under-Armour All-American Game in early January. Elder is a three-star prospect, per 247sports, and is recruited by Lorenzo Ward.
2. Safety Elijah Shumate (Don Bosco Prep, Ramsey, NJ): Elijah Shumate is a big target on the board for USC. He is friends with current USC commit Kaiwan Lewis, as well as current USC freshman Sheldon Royster. The Garden State native visited Carolina for the Florida game and the experience only cemented the Gamecocks in his top tier.
Shumate has already visited USC and Rutgers and recently visited Notre Dame this past weekend. He is rumored to be thinking of taking a visit to both Oklahoma and Michigan.
Shumate has stated that he plans to announce his decision at the Army All-American Game in early January. He is a four-star prospect, per 247sports, and is recruited by G.A. Mangus.
South Carolina is working hard to close this recruiting objective but Notre Dame is making a big late push. The Irish want him as a running back which could provide the Irish a lean in their favor.
3. Spur Jordan Diggs (Island Coast HS, Cape Coral, FL): Jordan Diggs is a Gamecocks legacy. His father, Shed Diggs, played linebacker for the Gamecocks during the mid-80s. The USC coaching staff has told Diggs that he is the only prospect being recruited to play the Spur position on the Gamecocks defense.
There lies the curve ball in this recruiting scenario as the defensive scheme with the spur position could potentially change in the future due to the departure of Ellis Johnson.
Diggs has taken all five official visits (Nebraska, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Michigan State and South Carolina). Diggs is a four-star prospect per 247sports and is recruited by G.A. Mangus.
Look for USC to firm up this commitment and stress to this young man there is still a strong role for him on the defense.
4. Defensive End Tyriq McCord (Jefferson HS, Tampa, FL): Tyriq McCord is a hybrid defensive end/linebacker prospect with a lot of high-level BCS programs chasing his signature. McCord plays at the same high school that former Gamecocks quarterback, Stephen Garcia, played.
McCord has favored the Gamecocks for a while even prior to his official visit back in November, but that lead has only strengthened, as the Gamecocks ended the season on a high note.
Another factor in Carolina’s corner is the fact that McCord is cousins with USC junior defensive lineman Aldrick Fordham.
McCord is a four-star prospect, per 247 sports, and is recruited by G.A. Mangus.
5. Running Back Mike Davis (Stephenson HS, Stone Mountain, GA): Mike Davis recently came back on the recruiting market after de-committing from the Florida Gators and now has many schools pursuing his services.
USC has maintained constant contact with Davis even after he committed to UF. Davis has two high school teammates, Kyle Fleetwood and Carlos Hood, already committed to South Carolina which one would think helps the Gamecocks.
Davis has indicated no leader as he is talking to many programs currently and has a visit to USC lined up for January 14th. USC would love to land this young man to join their future backfield.
Davis says he will announce close to Signing Day. He is a four-star prospect, per 247sports, and is recruited by Lorenzo Ward.
