It’s almost impossible to predict and project college baseball until the draft is over, but now that it is, it’s a little easier to see which teams have a chance to be good in 2021.

For college baseball analyst Mike Rooney, the Gamecocks are one of those teams who can make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament next season.

“I really believe in this coaching staff, first of all. I think it was just a matter of time before coach (Mark) Kingston and these guys started to get some momentum going. At a school at South Carolina, one of the challenges you always face is the draft,” Rooney told GamecockCentral. “Man, did they have a perfect draft. I mean it could not have gone better.”

Rooney released his “Eight For Omaha” preview for the 2021 season on PerfectGame and, while he didn’t predict the Gamecocks to get to the College World Series, he thinks they’ll be one of the other eight teams to play in a Super Regional.

Why? He thinks after a near-perfect draft and an older team returning it’s pieces aligning at the right time.

“I think it’s that perfect storm. The draft went perfect. They have an older team. (Thomas) Farr and (Brannon) Jordan staying? You always hear the second year for a junior college kid in the SEC is when you really see their true talent, but a lot of times you don’t get to see it because they sign after their junior year. For South Carolina they are going to get to see it from those kids.”

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The Gamecocks return two thirds of their starting rotation and former top 100 prospect Brennan Milone, who Rooney considers a rising celebrity in the SEC.

“I just have a feeling Brennan Milone is a star,” Rooney said. “Of course he came in with a lot of accolades, but it’s interesting to see an accomplished coaching staff at a program like South Carolina where they will bat a true freshman third. Even if they do it for a few games, those are flash bulbs going off that this kid is pretty special.”

Six of the team’s eight best hitters from last season are expected to return next season and Rooney thinks a lot of them can make a serious impact in 2021, which should contribute to success in the SEC.

“Brady Allen took a huge step forward; Eyster coming back is exciting, Wes Clarke jumping out like he has,” he said. “I know it’s a big jump from what they’ve been building to, but I think in the SEC if you can survive that league, you’re probably an Omaha-caliber club.”

The Gamecocks also have a top 10 recruiting class and Rooney thinks South Carolina’s 2021 team will be deep enough to not put any of those first-year players in uncomfortable situations.

“That’s one of the things I like about this team. I think they kept kids of that caliber but they don’t have to force those kids into that space where they’re going to be exposed,” Rooney said.

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“Brandon Fields, that’s a really high profile guy. In normal years you wonder, ‘Am I going to keep him?’ Will Sanders, I’ve seen him pitch. I think the upside for Will Sanders is really high. It’s like pray for the problem. Will Sanders is going to have to work his way into the weekend rotation as a freshman. In all likelihood, maybe he isn’t a weekend starter. To me, that’s when you know your program is starting to build a little momentum.”

For Rooney, this kind of class is the thing the Mark Kingston era has been building to since he took over in the summer of 2018.

“I think Mark Kingston is the right guy for this job,” he said. “With Mark Kingston, he’s extremely bright. He’s won everywhere. He knows what college baseball looks like at the highest level. It’s been a meticulous building up of this program. In today’s college baseball, there are no quick fixes…Georgia’s the great example. It was four long years for Scott Stricklin there. Then, the next thing you know, it’s two straight years of a top eight national seed. I do think it’s the right way to build it up and Mark Kingston’s done that.”

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If the Gamecocks ultimately do make it to a Super, it’ll be the second in three full seasons under Kingston and could be a step in the right direction getting the program back to the College World Series.

“It’s one of the very best fan bases in college baseball. South Carolina fans aren’t just passionate about college baseball, they really know it,” Rooney said. “I think the bottom line is this is exciting to me because college baseball is better when South Carolina is an elite program.”