South Carolina football’s top ‘22 recruit has decommited.
Gunner Stockton, the nation’s top dual threat signal caller for the class of 2022, has announced his decommitment from the University of South Carolina. Stockton released a statement on social media detailing his decision.
— Gunner Stockton (@GunnerStockton) January 12, 2021
Stockton originally committed to the Gamecocks back in August of 2020. At the time, South Carolina was still being coached by head coach Will Muschamp, and Mike Bobo was still the Gamecocks’ offensive coordinator.
A lot has changed since then, as Muschamp was fired mid season, and Bobo opted to leave the coaching staff for Auburn, just a couple of days after signing a contract to remain in Columbia.
Stockton is said to have a very close tie to the Bobo family, which makes Auburn a front runner moving forward.
South Carolina still has Connor Shaw on staff, who Stockton points to as a childhood idol growing up. Connor’s brother Jaybo is currently Stockton’s high school coach, so the relationship with the Shaws could still play out in the Gamecocks’ favor.
During his junior season, Stockton threw for 3,128 yards and 45 touchdowns. He also added 1,581 yards and 26 scores on the ground.
Stockton was the only member of the 2022 class, and was set to become the highest rated Gamecocks quarterback commit in program history. Now, though, the Gamecocks will have to convince him to return to the class.
If the team can show marked improvement on the field in 2021, they may can get him back in the boat, but for now, things don’t look good for the Gamecocks.