It seemed like everyone around Nick Muse thought he would play defense at the college level.

In fairness, there was plenty of evidence to support the rationale. In high school, Muse had grown from a 6-foot, 190-pounder as a freshman to a star linebacker as a junior. That season, he racked up 160 tackles and intercepted 7 passes for his South Point squad in Belmont, North Carolina. Muse started on offense, too, but caught just two passes during that 2015 campaign playing in his school's traditional "Redbone" offense.

"Our favorite thing is four yards and a cloud of dust," said Kevin Muse, Nick's father. "That’s 12 yards, then we’re going to run it again. He was a danged good linebacker in high school. I always tell people he’s not the fastest, not the slowest. His reaction time to figure out the play, he’s ahead. He just sees things."

Yet, the summer going into his senior season, Muse made a decision that could be chalked up as a matter of the head and the heart.

He wanted to be a tight end.

"I said if I play linebacker, I’ll be an average to good linebacker in college. Then my career will be done. Then I’ll have to go get a job. That’s something I don’t really think I’m looking forward to," Nick Muse laughed.

With a new focus, Muse hit the summer camp circuit prior to his senior season, where he worked out for college coaches at North Carolina, NC State, and others.

Everyone seemed to like what Muse showed during the drills and one-on-one portions. Still, none of them - the major programs - stepped forward with a scholarship offer.

Said Muse: "I'd go to these camps, show out pretty well, then they’d say ‘send me your tape.'"

There were two problems. One, just about every play on Muse's highlight tape was on the defensive side of the ball. Secondly, with just months left to go until senior prospects would sign, many schools already had commitments from a tight end, or were well-advanced with top targets.

"I tried my best to get him to walk on at certain places, but he was committed that he wanted to help his mom and me out like his brother (Tanner Muse) did with paying for his schooling," Kevin Muse said. "We always saw that as a bonus."

The 2016-2017 high school season arrived, and Muse forged ahead, posting another wildly successful season on the gridiron as a senior. This time, in addition to putting up his typical huge numbers on defense - he finished his senior year with 165 tackles and 7 more interceptions - he was finally able to showcase his abilities in the passing game. That two-catch tally he posted as a junior was increased to 31 as a senior, with 9 of those receptions going for touchdowns.

When it came time for Muse to sign a scholarship agreement, four programs had extended offers: Gardner-Webb, Furman, Elon, and William & Mary.

He chose the latter, and it didn't take long for Muse's talents at tight end to manifest at the college level. In Williamsburg, he became just the second true freshman tight end since 1989 to earn a start for the school. In 2018, his sophomore season, he caught 30 passes for 453 yards.

Then, a series of circumstances led to Muse making another critical decision: the choice to transfer in the summer of 2019.

A friend and teammate, Nate Evans, was tragically shot and killed that spring. The program's head coach had resigned following the 2018 season, and Muse's position coach that recruited him to the school - Mario Acitelli - had been fired. William & Mary's administration had pledged to cover summer school expenses for two years straight, but didn't follow through on that promise. With two good years of tape from his time in Williamsburg, Muse felt he could step up to a higher level of college football, and do it closer to his North Carolina home.

He entered the NCAA transfer portal, with new William & Mary head coach Mike London assuring him he would have a spot on the roster should he choose to return. Once again, Muse had four offers to choose from; this time, all were on a bigger stage.

He quickly found out that East Carolina, NC State, LSU, and South Carolina all wanted him.

East Carolina, from Muse's home state, was one suitor.

"I really liked it. I love coach Houston and he’s going to turn that program around," said Muse.

This time around, NC State finally jumped in for Muse. It was too late.

"I love Coach (Dave) Doeren, but he passed up on me two years in a row when I went to his camp," Muse recalled. "They offered me preferred walk-ons. I see all these other guys that got a chance, and I'm like, 'what the hell.' That was my dream school."

LSU had ties to William & Mary and to Muse. His offensive coordinator from the past two seasons at Williamsburg, DJ Mangas, had moved to an off-field role in Baton Rouge. Joe Brady, the wunderkind offensive coordinator, spent time at William & Mary years prior. That meant some specific NCAA rules that had to be followed during the recruiting process because of those ties, but fit and distance really played in heavily.

It came down to the Tigers and Gamecocks.

"This was the year right before LSU went undefeated, so I knew they were going to be good," said Muse. "It's very far from home. I felt like South Carolina was a better fit for me, tight-end wise. I It would be an hour and a half drive, instead of a three hour flight plus some change in driving. It would be a better plan to come home, let my friends and family drive back an hour and a half. I felt like that was a better spot for me."

Shannon Muse, Nick's mother, watched as her son went through the process of choosing a new program.

"His dream was to play for a bigger school," she told GamecockCentral.com. "South Carolina, when he got there, the weight room, everything about the school he loved. He loved the location. Everything that went with it, he was like, 'this is the place for me.'"

Muse committed to play for the Gamecocks in June of 2019, but his path to actually getting on the field in Columbia was not without a challenge. At that time, players transferring to the FBS level still had to be granted a waiver by the NCAA in order to become immediately eligible. Muse waited for his answer, one that had not come even as he sat on the sidelines for South Carolina's season opener against North Carolina.

"You're playing in Charlotte, my hometown. It was tough," Muse said. "It was a learning experience. I knew I was going to play, but you're sitting over there watching practice, don't know when you'll be able to compete. I am blessed they gave me a chance to play after the first game. I turned in five or six little papers and after about the fifth one I guess they said, man, he's getting annoying, might as well accept it."

Muse got his chance the following game against Charleston Southern, catching his first two balls in the Garnet and Black. He saw action in five more contests after that before another setback in the sixth.

Muse caught a ball in the flat, ran into open field, then planted to try to cut past a defender.

"We pretty much knew when we watched it. When he went down and he stayed down, I knew it was pretty serious," Shannon Muse said. "I've always told them if they're hurt, that's fine. If you're not hurt, you just need to get up."

The diagnosis that Muse, his parents, and South Carolina's medical team presumed was later confirmed - a torn ACL. It meant Muse would miss out on the chance to play against Clemson - featuring his brother, safety Tanner Muse - later that season, and would face a long road of rehabilitation.

To add another layer, the injury took place on his mother's birthday as she looked on from the Williams-Brice Stadium stands.

"I was like, 'Happy Birthday, Mom!' I tried to make a little joke out of it. I’m kind of blessed that God put it on my life as a learning experience, and I rolled with it," Muse said. "It was probably harder on my mom and dad. I think I'm very strong mentally. For me, it was like, you know what, I'm going to knock this out and get back. The worst that can ever happen is it happens again. I'm not scared of this."

After months of 5:45 wakeup calls for treatment and working his way back as teammates were full go in workouts and practice, Muse was ready for the 2020 season. It was a campaign that did not go as anyone associated with the program planned, but Muse turned in a quality individual season.

He saved his best performance for last. Although the Gamecocks were overmatched on that night against Georgia, Muse tagged the Bulldogs for 10 catches, 131 yards, and a touchdown.

"The score shouldn't define how you play," he said. "Luke (Doty) was getting his first start. He went out there and did what he’s supposed to do. I told him if you ever get in a pickle, just throw the ball to me, I'll be open. You’re running routes against first, second, third round guys."

The offseason brought additional shifts, as South Carolina made a head coaching change and brought in Shane Beamer to lead the program. For Muse, it's his third head coach and third position coach at the college level.

"Coach Beamer’s a very respectable man, a high class guy. He’s brought a lot to this team since he’s been here," Muse said. "Coach Kimrey's a great guy. He's a big philosophy guy, always has a couple stories to go with practice."

That additional choice Muse made - to stick around in Columbia for a "super senior" year under a new staff - is a situation he's walking into with a chip firmly planted on his shoulder.

"I had four drops at the beginning of the year in three games, which is terrible. At the end of the year, I think I had four drops total. I’m still known as the guy who can’t catch," Muse said of the 2020 season. "So, I need to prove to some other people that I can be a go-to-guy. If I’m not getting double-teamed, I’m usually open. I think it's because of my knowledge of the game, understanding coverages, how to run routes. I have to prove that I can catch the ball and make people miss."

With the tight end position expected to play a significant role in the Gamecock offense this season, Muse expressed hope for the team's prospects this season.

"You always have a chance to be great until you prove otherwise," he said.

Those choices that Muse has made throughout his career - to focus on tight end, to accept a scholarship to a smaller program, to transfer to South Carolina, and to come back for another year to be a focal point in Marcus Satterfield's offense - those look pretty good now, right?

"Yes sir," Kevin Muse said. "We're blue collar. That's the way it is. You do the best you can. He wants to make the South Carolina Gamecocks better and beat the heck out of whoever they play each week."

"When they’re little, you tell them to dream big dreams, dream the things you think are impossible and just go for it," said Shannon Muse. "He’s worked so hard for it. He changed his body, came through the ACL tear, so many things this spring, winning the offensive player award. For us to have two kids reaching those dreams, it’s a sense of pride and accomplishment and so happy for them."

That job - the one that's not football - that Muse wants to avoid for as long as possible? There will come a day when he has to get one. What's it going to be?

"For damn sure, it ain't going to be any kind of engineering," Muse said. "Dad always picks on me because I'm not a big mechanic guy."

The path could be to the weight room, where Muse said he frequently stays for an extra 30 minutes once the team wraps workouts just to pick the brains of staffers.

"I feel like if I can pass on the way to play and knowledge to younger kids, that would be a big deal for me," said Muse. "Hopefully, I can keep playing for a while."

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