SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS

When Will Muschamp was first hired, one of the first things he did was lay out his recruiting plan: win the state.

The Gamecocks have done that so far, getting commitments from the four in-state prospects they offered, but the assistants are also venturing into territory they usually haven’t recruited before in Tennessee.

“Bobby Bentley has really done a nice job up there, making some inroads in that state to help us recruit better there,” “Nashville is an easy flight to Charlotte, and it’s an hour drive, so for a family, that’s an easy drive to come see their son play. To me, you draw five hours around your campus and figure out where you can recruit the best.”

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The Gamecocks, led by Bentley, have upped their efforts to pull some of the state’s top talent, especially from the Memphis area.

They signed two prospects so far in the 2019 class from Tennessee—Joseph Anderson and Keveon Mullins—after picking up Maxwell Iyama from the same area in last year’s class.

Eldridge Thompson, who played at Coffeyville Community College before coming to South Carolina, also played his high school career in Tennessee.

It’s a part of the country that, until Muschamp was hired, the Gamecocks didn’t recruit consistently but have in the last two classes.

“The football is really improving there, a lot,” Muschamp said. “Number one, Nashville, with the Titans, it’s one of the fastest-growing areas in the United States, so there are a lot of people moving in who are necessarily tied to the state.”

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Anderson, one of the bigger gets in this year’s early signing period, is a four-star defensive lineman that vaulted recently into the Rivals Top 100 players nationally.

A 6-foot-4, 260-pound lineman will add a lot of depth to a defensive line returning the majority of its contributors next season.

“He is guy that’s got some toughness about him,” Muschamp said. “Think he is a guy that tremendously improved throughout his senior year and played at an extremely high level, especially in the playoffs, and was a very difficult guy to block. We had some coaches at the state championship game, and they were extremely impressed with Joseph and what he did on the field.”

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Mullins, who actually played against Anderson for a state title this season, was a two-way player in high school that comes to South Carolina as a four-star wide receiver.

The 6-foot-1 receiver caught 24 passes this year for 500 yards and nine touchdowns.

“He came to our camp and has really good ball skills,” Muschamp said. “He’s a guy that we’re really excited about. His mom, Shirita, has been great in this process. We’re excited about getting Keveon on campus.