Crosby ready to shine for Gamecocks

[rl]

BAMBERG -- Highly-touted four-star prospect Kevin 'K.C.' Crosby had his pick of colleges, many of them in the SEC, but chose to stay close to home and play for South Carolina.

Crosby, rated by Rivals.com as the No. 6 overall prospect in the Palmetto State, signed his letter of intent with the Gamecocks on Wednesday morning, becoming the second elite recruit from Bamberg-Ehrhardt High School in four years (A.J. Cann in 2010) to sign with USC.

The 6-foot-2, 240-pounder had a who's who of major college programs to choose from throughout the recruiting process: Alabama, Florida, LSU, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt in the SEC as well as Clemson, Florida State, Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Penn State, Southern Cal, Virginia Tech and many others.

Crosby committed to USC last June and remained loyal to the Gamecocks even as other schools remained in hot pursuit over the last eight months.

"I wanted to remain loyal to my school and not flip on Signing Day," Crosby told reporters following a short ceremony involving five former Red Raider players at the Bamberg-Ehrhardt High gym. "I felt South Carolina was the best fit for me overall. That's where I felt most comfortable. It's not far from home, so my family can come see me play every Saturday.

"That's why I decided to stay. With all the great offers I had, staying in-state was sometimes tough, but I feel I made a great decision. I'm officially a Gamecock now. It's exciting."

Rivals.com ranked Crosby as the No. 11 tight end in the country, but he envisions filling a H-Back role similar to former USC standout Patrick DiMarco.

"Coach Spurrier said I could play more of a H-Back where I'm a hybrid type player," Crosby said. "I could put my hand down or flex out or go in the backfield and play fullback. All those things. Considering my size, that's a great fit for me.

Crosby is three or four inches shorter than current USC tight ends Busta Anderson, Jerell Adams and Drew Owens, all of whom stand 6-foot-5 or taller, and he realizes he must display a variety of skills in order to become a major contributor to USC's offense.

"I'm not a typically-sized tight end that is 6-4 or 6-5, but I can some things with my size," Crosby said. "Playing the H-back position will be very good for me."

Even if he doesn't find a spot on the depth chart as a true freshman in 2014, Crosby eyes contributing on special teams. In short, he doesn't foresee redshirting as the coaches seek ways to utilize his rare athleticism.

"My freshman year, if I don't take the position of H-Back, I want to play special teams," Crosby said. "I want to get on the field as a freshman."

Like all incoming freshman, Crosby's biggest challenge is preparing for the transition from high school to major college football. After a spring filled with weight-lifting and training, Crosby plans to arrive on campus at the beginning of June in time for the first semester of summer school.

"They told me that when I come in I have to work hard and play to compete," Crosby said. "Once you get into college, everybody is on the same level, so you have to compete to get better and get a spot on the field. Once I get there, I want to develop my game more and help them win the SEC championship and national championship."

Crosby spoke occasionally with Cann, but says the All-SEC offensive lineman was careful not to impose his own will upon the newcomer.

"I wouldn't say A.J. had a lot of influence over me, but he gave me a lot of words of wisdom on how to go about picking my school and deciding where I want to be for the next four or five years," Crosby said. "He wanted us to be teammates, but at the end of the day he just wanted what was best for me."

Crosby's father, Butch Crosby, is the head coach at Bamberg-Ehrhardt High, so the younger Crosby is the prototypical 'Coach's Son.'

"It's going to be different (not playing for my father), but I'm ready for the challenge ahead," Crosby said. "He prepared me for going off to college and being his son, I had it hard."

Crosby estimates he has attended about 20 Gamecock home games over the years and gets chills just thinking about running out to '2001' with 80,000 fans cheering loudly.

"It's crazy. It's going to be different," Crosby said. "I'm going to go from 2,000 to 4,000 people at our high school games to 80,000. I'm ready for the atmosphere and the excitement. It gets real loud in there."

Soon after Crosby committed to USC, Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Mike Farrell said Crosby could be utilized in multiple roles considering his size and speed.

"He is essentially an H-Back that could play tight end or he could be a slot receiver or he could move to linebacker because he has played there," Farrell said. "He is not your prototypical tight end where he's a 6-foot-5, big target down the middle.

"But he's an extremely athletic kid that can work out of the backfield or he can be a third-down passing option. You can slot him out against linebackers, where he's a mismatch with his athleticism. You can do so many different things with him."