Commitment days are always special.

For a high school football player to lock in his future with the school of his choice, knowing he's going to play at the next level, and will have his high education paid for, is a moment never forgotten.

For reasons that will soon be clear, Miami (Fla.) Florida Christian standout Jamaal Whyce's Father's Day commitment to the University of South Carolina carried extra meaning.

"It feels great, to be honest, I'm not even going to lie," Whyce said. "I'm happy to be a Gamecock. I grew up watching them. One of my favorite D-linemen, if not my favorite D-lineman, is Jadeveon Clowney. That's really the first D-lineman I really sat down and watched play, because I used to be a skill (player) coming up. That's a person I paid attention to and I liked the swag and everything. They used to call me Jadeveon Clowney when I was young. So I'm happy. I can't believe it to be honest."

Whyce was recruited to the Gamecocks by defensive line coach Jimmy Lindsey. Lindsey and the Gamecocks offered the 6-foot-4, 270-pound prospect in late February and a relationship quickly formed that grew well beyond football.

And that bond played a major role in Whyce's decision to choose the Gamecocks.

"When I first got my offers, South Carolina came towards the middle, and ever since the jump with Coach Lindsey, he's just been the realest person," Whyce explained. "Of the recruiters, he's been one of the realist people I've met. When we talk, we have real conversations about real life, not just about sports. We talk about sports (too).

"There's been times, Coach Lindsey would call me and we'd be on the phone for an hour or two and we'd be just talking, not even paying attention. I mess with him as a person. And I already tried to verbal commit, and he was like, 'I want for you to wait until you get here and see what it's like. I don't want you to feel like I'm trying to rush you, I want you to take your time with it.' And once he said that, that's what really put the icing on top."

Whyce's first opportunity to see South Carolina in person came two weekends ago when he made an unofficial visit to the school with a group of players from south Florida.

He toured the campus and saw the city. Checked out the football facilities and everything else the area had to offer. He was sold.

"When I first got to the city, I instantly knew, this is perfect for me," Whyce said. "Because I come from a small city and how that city is set up and how it's run, that's exactly like my city. It just fit perfectly and then I saw the campus and I'm a big nature person and it's a lot of trees and all types of stuff going on, everything.

"I'm a person, my mind will be racing, so I think about a lot in the day, but when I got there, it was like everything just calmed down for me. Like I was just at ease. I'm like, I can do this. This is perfect. I can tell you 100 percent, the way I felt there, I didn't feel that way at no other school. It felt like home; it literally felt like home, like I can do this."

While on campus, Whyce of course met with head coach Shane Beamer for the first time.

Since becoming South Carolina's head football coach, Beamer has preached the values of family and love and the aspects of a football team that stretch well beyond the Xs and Os of the gridiron.

Those mottos resonated with Whyce, who was looking for similar values in his future college program.

"I love Beamer; Beamer's my guy," Whyce said. "I vibe with him perfectly. I'm one of those type of people, when it comes to football, like sports, the people you're in the locker room with, especially if you're about to be with these people for one, two, three years, it don't get better than that. So I feel exactly what he's saying. It's bigger than football."

While Whyce didn't announce his intentions until Sunday, he already knew during that visit where he was going to spend his college days.

He informed Lindsey that he was ready to be a Gamecock.

"I told him when I was there," Whyce said. "As soon as I got back from the little tour visit, I told him. I already knew it. Like I said, I've been wanting to verbal commit, but you can pretty much say he didn't let me, because he wanted it to be 100, he was like, 'I want for you to see it first.' Once it was time for me to commit, he was excited, he got real happy. He was like, I need you to be my first D-lineman commit. It was a big moment for both of us. It was real hype."

That special moment was proceeded by another around a week later when Whyce announced his verbal commitment to the University of South Carolina.

Whyce's pledge came on Father's Day for reasons we'll let him explain for himself...

"Today meant everything," Whyce said, "because my life was different before all this football stuff. The past year has been the biggest change of my life ever. Through time, you're going to figure out why. This meant a lot.

"When I was a kid, I used to get in trouble all the time. I was so used to my dad telling me, 'Hey bro you've got to tighten up, you've got to do this, you've got to do that.' It took for my dad to pass away for me to actually get on top of what I'm supposed to do and to understand life. I've never got my dad now for Father's Day, so I feel like, 'I've changed my whole life for you, I feel like I owe you this.' My dad broke his neck for me, so I've broke my neck for my brothers since he passed away, so this means the most to me,"

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