South Carolina Football – Impact Seniors
By Jacob Elsey
DEF: Keir Thomas, Aaron Sterling
Thomas returns to Columbia for his fifth and final season with the Gamecocks. The redshirt senior has made 25 total starts along the Carolina defensive line.
Thomas was forced to sit out the majority of last year after an offseason surgery turned into an infection, which resulted in a medical redshirt. He’ll be expected to bounce back and be a major player at both defensive tackle and end. The Miami native has recorded 110 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks in his Gamecock career.
Thomas’s versatility allows him to stay on the field for nearly every down and distance. He’s quick enough to provide interior pressure when facing obvious passing situations, yet big enough to man the outside in more traditional defensive sets. That versatility gives coordinator Travaris Robinson options when looking to create mismatches along his front four. It will also allow South Carolina to use multiple alignments throughout the year.
Though the Gamecocks lose Javon Kinlaw and DJ Wonnum, they still return talent and depth along the defensive line. They’ll also add five-star recruit Jordan Burch to the team this Fall. As the most experienced lineman, Thomas will be tasked with anchoring the group and showing leadership as he looks to continue his football career. Look for Thomas to be in the mix for the SEC’s comeback player of the year in 2020.
Sterling returns to South Carolina following his best season as a Gamecock. As a junior in 2019, he led the team in tackles for loss, and tied for the team lead in sacks. The Atlanta native started 11 games at defensive end.
Sterling is a bit on the smaller side in regards to your typical defensive end, but he uses his 6’ 1” frame to his advantage. He can create leverage against opponents that are usually three to four inches taller, and just seems to have a knack for getting to the football. He was most effective last year in Carolina’s “rabbit” package, which lines four pass rushers along the defensive front in obvious passing downs.
It will be interesting to see if Sterling’s production goes down as he’ll certainly receive more attention from a scouting and game planning stand point. He also won’t have DJ Wonnum and Javon Kinlaw there to help. With that being said, he is still the Gamecocks’ best pure pass rusher and should have his opportunities to cause chaos in opponents’ backfields.
Read more: Impact Juniors
Read more: Impact Sophomores
Read more: Impact Freshmen