Advertisement
football Edit

Most important freshmen in 2020

The Gamecocks are gearing up for a very important part of their offseason and the next few weeks will determine which of the team's newcomers get to play this fall.

South Carolina has a host of freshmen who have a chance to play and play early who will start their first preseason practice next week.

Before that happens, though, GamecockCentral looks at the most important freshmen this season.

Photo by Katie Dugan
Photo by Katie Dugan
Advertisement

MarShawn Lloyd

Lloyd is probably the most talked about member of the Gamecocks' 2020 recruiting class as one of two five-stars in the group. Lloyd plays a position in running back that gives freshmen a better chance to start early, and the freshman will absolutely factor into the running back rotation this fall.

Also see: Latest scoop on a few priority football targets

The Gamecock run game was better last season but lose their top two backs in Rico Dowdle and Tavien Feaster and it'll be up to Lloyd and the other guys on the roster to try and keep production up. If Lloyd can live up to some of the hype building around him then it should be a good year on the ground.

Jordan Burch

Burch is the other five-star in the Gamecocks' recruiting class and is actually the highest-rated member of the group as the No. 17 player in the country. It was a big recruiting win for South Carolina, plucking the homegrown player away from Georgia, Alabama, LSU and Clemson in December before signing him in February.

The freshman has a good chance at playing early at the BUCK position after D.J. Wonnum graduated and got drafted by the Vikings. Burch will compete for BUCK snaps with Brad Johnson and another freshman Gilber Edmund.

If his talent translates to the field then the Gamecocks will have another strong defensive line this season.

Also see: More notes and scoop on the SEC's pending decision

Jaheim Bell

The Gamecocks have a lot of questions offensively after struggling last season and losing a lot of production at the skill position spots, and Bell could be an answer at tight end.

He's listed as a tight end but the Gamecocks plan to use him in a lot of different ways as a H-Back while splitting him out wide and trying to get him involved in a lot of different ways.

The Gamecocks need playmakers offensively and with one guaranteed tight end scheduled to play in Nick Muse, Bell has a solid shot to get on the field once healthy.

Will Muschamp said Bell is dealing with a meniscus injury and should be cleared by the beginning of October, meaning he could miss a few games to start the year.

Rico Powers and Ger-Cari Caldwell

The two are listed together because both play a position (wide receiver) that's a big question mark for South Carolina this season. The Gamecocks lost one of their most productive receivers in program history with Bryan Edwards now in the NFL and have just one player (Shi Smith) returning who had more than 20 receptions last season.

Also see: Assessing South Carolina's hoops needs in 2022

Without a lot of experience at receiver, both have a chance to see the field early an make an impact. Muschamp said in his pre-training camp press conference Powers is making an early impression at receiver and could help revitalize the offense.

Luke Doty

Doty's situation is an interesting one with the Gamecocks trying to find ways to get the four-star, top 100 prospect on the field early in his career. The Gamecocks are trying him some at receiver during camp and Muschamp said he's going to play there some this season.

His talent is undeniable, and he's shown enough to the coaches to make an impact early this season.

Advertisement