Florida back commits to Gamecocks
Bradenton (Fla.) Braden River class of 2018 three-star running back Deshaun Fenwick announced his pledge to South Carolina Wednesday night.
The Sunshine State product originally planned on making his choice after spring football practice, but ended up accelerating his time frame. The news was initially delivered to running backs coach Bobby Bentley during a phone conversation.
"We went over some things about my practice and we started talking about when I would make my decision," Fenwick told GamecockCentral.com. "I told him I was ready to make my decision and commit."
From there, Fenwick spoke with USC head coach Will Muschamp, who later delivered his signature "Spurs Up!" post on Twitter to celebrate running back's commitment.
"I talked to Coach Muschamp a little while after that. They were excited, really excited. They said they probably wouldn’t sleep tonight."
The 6-foot-2, 208-pounder chose Carolina over Georgia and also holds offers from Boston College, Central Michigan, Iowa State, Ole Miss, Missouri, Texas, USF and UCF. What put USC over the top for him?
"It was meeting Coach Bentley and the strength and conditioning coach because that’s who you’re going to be with for most of the four years," he said. "I was looking at the running back situation and they didn’t get a running back last year. Me coming in this year will really work out. That way I’ll have a chance to play. I love the school and the campus and dorms, the locker room, everything about it. That was a good experience when I visited."
Fenwick said with his verbal commitment in place that he's finished with the process.
"I can’t stop coaches from coming to my school, but I’m going to let them know I’m committed and leave it at that," he said.
Fenwick was recruited to Carolina by running backs coach Bobby Bentley, who was by his school for an evaluation visit earlier Wednesday. He is the first running back commit for the Gamecocks' 2018 class.
Fenwick, who is originally from Louisville, Ky., described his game to Rivals.com during a previous interview.
“It is fair to say that I like contact," he said. "I pride myself on playing really hard and playing smart. I look at myself as a chain mover, because I always know where the first down is. Whenever I get the ball, that’s where I’m headed. If I’ve got the ability to break it past there, I’m just going to keep going. I want to stretch the field as much as I can. I’ve got to work on my speed more, but I’ve gotten a lot faster since sophomore year. I don’t look at myself as a power back, though. I’m starting to see myself as a downs back, as far as catching and running the ball. I’m not slow, and I like contact. Some guys don’t, but it’s just football.”
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