Where South Carolina football sits in recruiting rankings following five-star commitment

On Friday, South Carolina landed a commitment from offensive lineman Darius Gray. A five-star prospect, Gray is the No. 1 interior offensive lineman in the country. He picked the Gamecocks over the LSU Tigers, Tennessee Volunteers, Clemson Tigers, and Ohio State Buckeyes. He also boasted offers from just about every relevant program in the country that thought they had a shot.

The pledge from Gray follows a decommitment (and flip to Tennessee) from four-star offensive tackle Kamari Blair. It also means the Gamecocks have the top two interior offensive linemen in Rivals’ individual player rankings, with Zyon Guiles.

Let’s take a look at South Carolina football recruiting and its place in the team recruiting rankings and the individual rankings of the players committed in the class of 2026 at the time of this writing. Several other Gamecock targets should announce college decisions soon, so the rankings could change again in the coming weeks.

*All rankings will come from the Rivals Industry Ranking, a weighted composite from the rankings from Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN*

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Prior to Gray’s announcement, South Carolina was No. 17 in the country in the team recruiting rankings. Shane Beamer’s group had just 14 players publicly pledged so far in the class. Now, with player 15 in the boat, the Gamecocks have moved up a spot to the No. 16 overall class. Gray’s pledge gives Carolina 10 four-star or five-star players in the cycle.

The Gamecocks are the highest-ranked team that has fewer than 17 players committed. Because of that, it is unsurprising USC features well in average player rating, sitting at No. 11 in the country. The team’s No. 16 overall ranking puts the Gamecocks eighth in the SEC. Every team positioned ahead of South Carolina in the overall rankings has more players committed, boosting their ranking. Tennessee, one of the SEC teams ahead of USC, has a lower average player rating.

Last year, the Gamecocks landed the No. 18 class in the country, the program’s third-straight top 20 group. The 2025 class also ranked No. 11 in the SEC.

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OL Darius Gray
No. 31 overall
No. 1 nationally among interior offensive linemen
No. 2 in Virginia
Five-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

The top player committed to South Carolina in the 2026 cycle is Gray. A Rivals Industry Ranking five-star, he also boasts a five-star ranking from another major recruiting outlet. Gray might be the most athletic offensive lineman in the country.

DT Aiden Harris
No. 74 overall
No. 5 nationally among defensive linemen
No. 5 in North Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Prior to Darius Gray’s announcement, Harris was the highest-rated commit in the Rivals Industry Ranking. He is a consensus four-star prospect and ranks as a top-10 defensive lineman according to both Rivals and 247Sports. He fills a big South Carolina position of need at defensive tackle.

QB Landon Duckworth
No. 85 overall
No. 8 nationally among quarterbacks
No. 5 in Alabama
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Duckworth was the first commitment in South Carolina’s 2026 class long ago. Now, after a winding road that included a decommitment, he is the most recent pledge. A consensus four-star prospect, the dual-threat quarterback is considered a top 10 national quarterback by all three major recruiting services. He is the highest-rated player in the class, according to 247Sports.

S J’Zavien Currence
No. 90 overall
No. 8 nationally among safeties
No. 2 in South Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

According to two other major recruiting services, Currence is the highest-rated player in the class. He is a consensus four-star prospect.

OL Zyon Guiles
No. 173 overall
No. 12 nationally among interior offensive linemen
No. 4 in South Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Rivals’ player rankings have Guiles right on the verge of five-star territory as he is the highest-rated player in the Rivals300 and the No. 1 overall interior offensive lineman in the country. Guiles is also a consensus four-star prospect.

WR Sequel Patterson
No. 229 overall
No. 39 nationally among wide receivers
No. 5 in South Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

A reclassification from the class of 2027, Patterson could have been a four-star prospect at wide receiver or cornerback. He will play receiver for the Gamecocks. Before his reclassification, he was a top 100 prospect in the Rivals Industry Ranking for the ’27 cycle.

TE Jamel Howse
No. 280 overall
No. 13 nationally among tight ends
No. 7 in South Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Howse is a four-star prospect in two of the three major recruiting rankings, including earning top 200 honors from one.

DT Noah Clark
No. 315 overall
No. 34 nationally among defensive linemen
No. 16 in North Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Clark ranks as high as 126th nationally according to another outlet’s four-star evaluation. The big fella will be a nose tackle for South Carolina, filling a major need on the USC roster.

EDGE/LB Andrew Harris
No. 351 overall
No. 37 nationally among EDGE players
No. 18 in North Carolina
Four-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

South Carolina likes Harris at linebacker, rather than EDGE. If his recruiting rating didn’t change, he would rank as the No. 25 linebacker nationally. As things stand, he is a four-star according to one major recruiting outlet.

RB Amari Thomas
No. 437 overall
No. 28 nationally among running backs
No. 62 in Florida
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Thomas is the newest commitment for South Carolina, completing a flip from Florida State. Though he is a three-star in the industry ranking, he is a top-200 national prospect and four-star recruit according to the Rivals individual player rankings.

DB KJ Johnson
No. 470 overall
No. 44 nationally among cornerbacks
No. 18 in Alabama
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

South Carolina’s coaching staff believes Johnson could play corner, safety, or nickel at the next level. He is a consensus three-star prospect but is just one recruiting point away from four-star status according to two services.

LB Keenan Britt
No. 476 overall
No. 40 nationally among linebackers
No. 19 in Alabama
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Previously listed as an EDGE, Britt will join the Gamecocks as a linebacker. One recruiting service considers him a four-star player (at EDGE) in the 2026 cycle.

CB Kosci Barnes
No. 585 overall
No. 56 nationally among cornerbacks
No. 26 in North Carolina
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Barnes is the prototypical Torrian Gray corner, standing at 6-2 and weighing 185 pounds. Though he will begin his career at corner, he could see reps at safety or nickel, too.

ATH/DB Triston Lewis
No. 739 overall
No. 38 nationally among athletes
No. 13 in South Carolina
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Lewis earned a Gamecock offer and committed on the same day. At 6-4 and 200 pounds, he is an intriguing prospect who likely will be a defensive back for South Carolina.

OL Anthony Baxter
No. 1240 overall
No. 111 nationally among interior offensive linemen
No. 18 in South Carolina
Three-star in Rivals Industry Ranking

Baxter, a high school teammate of J’Zavien Currence, is a consensus three-star prospect and the longest-tenured pledge in the class.

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