Gamecocks making linemen, trenches a priority in recruiting

Will Muschamp made it a priority since he started as South Carolina’s head coach to upgrade talent across the board with a focus on one specific area: the line of scrimmage.

And it seems to be working after signing 10 guys along the offensive and defensive lines in this class—capped by two big-time commitments Wednesday from Dylan Wonnum and Rick Sandidge.

“That was a huge emphasis on me going into this process was on both lines of scrimmage, to improve our quality of depth, to get bigger, to get longer, to get more athletic,” Muschamp said. “We hit the exclamation point today with Dylan and Ricky, so we’re really excited about those guys.”

Also see: Inside Rick Sandidge's commitment

Wonnum announced Saturday his intention of playing with South Carolina and officially put pen to paper Wednesday morning.

Sandidge took a little longer, waiting until Wednesday afternoon to announce his commitment and sign. Both are four-star prospects with Sandidge coming in as the No. 45 overall player in the 2018 class.

In all, South Carolina inked 10 linemen—five on each side—with two All-Americans in Wonnum and center Hank Manos.

The linemen have an average weight of 284 pounds and stand, on average, 6-foot-4.

“I think we’ve improved our strength levels as a football team from our first year,” Muschamp said. “You have to continue to evolve, continue to add big, strong people to your roster, to be able to control the line of scrimmage, to have the ability to run the ball when you need to and stop the run. It comes down to being a line of scrimmage game.”

Also see: Observations and notes from this weekend's baseball scrimmages

Part of the offensive line resurgence comes a year after offensive line coach Eric Wolford took the reigns of the group and has enhanced recruiting on the trenches.

He recruits, Muschamp said, guys that fit the program and Wolford’s mentality and it’s paying off so far on the field.

“I think he’s done a fantastic job,” Muschamp said. “I really like the mental makeup of the room that we have and moving forward and feel very confident that we’ll continue to improve the position.”

Also see: Recap of Will Muschamp's signing day press conference

It’s hard to know how these signees will pan out in their first year; Muschamp always says the true evaluation of a signing class comes two or three years down the road.

Most probably won’t play significant snaps this season being so young. But, regardless, it’s easy to see the Gamecocks are bolstering their line as quickly as they can.

“Generally, in my experience, has been the closer your position moves the ball, the harder it is to play as a young player,” Muschamp said. “We’re certainly not going to limit anybody’s opportunities. They’re going to get every opportunity in the world to make an immediate impact on our football team.”