Gamecocks offer Asheville receiver

SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS FOOTBALL RECRUITING

It's safe to say the recruiting process it taking off for Asheville (N.C.) A.C. Reynolds class of 2020 three-star wide receiver Jhari Patterson.

The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder has landed his first five offers in the last month or so, with South Carolina the latest to extend a scholarship when Patterson visited for the Gamecocks win over Akron Saturday.

"I kind of thought I was going to get one from them, because I always talk to Coach Bobby Bentley," Patterson said. "They had invited me to a game before, but I couldn't come down then. But they kind of surprised me when they offered on the visit. The head coach, Coach Muschamp, he took me in his office and he offered me. I was real happy. South Carolina was just beautiful. They said they're moving to a new (football facility). I liked it there."

The A.C. Reynolds standout has one connection to the school in his relationship with former Reynolds star and current Carolina running back Rico Dowdle.

"I like the school because when I was in eighth grade, Rico was a senior and I was real close to him," Patterson said. "He was like a big brother to me. Rico used to always come down to the middle school and talk to us as a group."

Patterson met South Carolina offensive coordinator Bryan McClendon at the game Saturday and already has a relationship with Bentley.

"I love Coach Bentley," Patterson said. "He's a real smooth dude when I see him in his suit. I really like Coach Bentley"

Patterson also has offers from North Carolina, East Carolina, Virginia and Wake Forest and is hearing from Clemson, Tennessee, Ohio State and Appalachian State.

"Really I just want to find a school that's going to bring me in like I'm family," he says. "And if football doesn't work out, somewhere I can still get a great education."