Assessing South Carolina’s 2016 recruiting class entering January

When Will Muschamp took the South Carolina job in early December, the Gamecocks had only 12 commitments in the Class of 2016 and were ranked 13th in the SEC.

A few days later, at the start of the dead period, things were a little better.

Now, a little more than two weeks after that, it’s clear that Muschamp and his new staff have been rather busy.

There are four early enrollees, including three four-star recruits. Quarterback Brandon McIlwain, Receiver Bryan Edwards and CB Jamarcus King are the headliners of what is quickly shaping up to be a nice class.

The number of commitments has risen to 18, and the league and national rankings are trending upward.

Muschamp was even snaring recruits on Christmas Day, getting a commitment from three-star end Keir Thomas.

The Gamecocks are still in play for four-star guard John Simpson and three-star RB Rico Dowdle as they work to add some volume. Muschamp is on record saying that he doesn’t feel any pressure to sign 25 guys, but if 25 SEC-caliber players are out there, you better believe he’ll take them.

Considering the turmoil around the program and the staff transition, this class is about as good as anyone could have hoped for — and it’s not done yet.

ASSESSING SOUTH CAROLINA’S 2016 CLASS

Current commits or enrollees: 18 (avg. rating .8509; last year: .8692)

Current big-name targets: G John Simpson, WR Cavin Ridley, RB Rico Dowdle, LB TJ Brunson

Biggest positions of need: DL, LB and S

National/SEC rank: 32/11

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Randy Capps

Randy Capps is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers SEC football, South Carolina and Georgia.