Terry Googer won’t play another snap of high-level football again, but that doesn’t mean his influence around the game—and the South Carolina program—is over.

The former Gamecock receiver announced Sunday his playing days were over after a neck injury but he’s now finding a new path bringing in new athletes for the team he used to play for.

“He’s working with us in recruiting and helping on the side,” Will Muschamp said. “He’s a great young man, and I hate anytime something like this happens. We’re certainly going to support him in every way we can.”

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Googer was carted off the field at Texas A&M after a head injury and never returned to the field in a Gamecock uniform.

His playing career was over, but he stayed on the team and watched from the sidelines for the remainder of the season.

Since then, his charismatic and engaging personality has been helping the Gamecocks connect with recruits and their parents to try and sway them to coming to Columbia to play.

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It’s a similar situation to Robert Tucker, who had to retire from football after an injury and is still a positive influence on the program, Muschamp said.

Googer was that on the field as a teammate, and the team is hoping he can continue to be that on the administrative side.

“He’s very articulate, well spoken. He’s great with parents and young men. (He is) a guy that’s a great ambassador and representative of our university and our football program,” Muschamp said. “It’s a very unfortunate situation that he had, but certainly, those guys are great ambassadors to our program.”

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With the majority of South Carolina’s 2018 class inked after Wednesday’s National Signing Day, Googer and the rest of the recruiting department now turn its attention to solidifying the next few cycles with the 2019 and 2020 group.

That was helped with the NCAA’s new early signing period in December as the Gamecocks inked 20 of their 22 new signees before the New Year.

With so many players already locked in, it let the recruiting staff get a jumpstart on the next round of future Gamecocks.

“It helped us get a head start on 19’s and 20’s in January,” Muschamp said. “You’re able to see more of those guys. You’re further ahead on those classes now than we’ve ever been before at this time.”