South Carolina football: Kevin Harris named SEC’s top running back

Another honor for South Carolina football’s Kevin Harris.

With Spring practice now wrapped up, the 2021 college football season will soon be upon us. The Gamecocks have seen a lot of transition this offseason, having brought in a new coaching staff, signed transfers, lost players to the NFL, and seen others leave the program. One thing that has remained constant, however, is the belief that South Carolina will field one of the conference’s top rushing attacks.

Much of that is due to returning starter Kevin Harris, who led the SEC with 1,138 regular season rushing yards. The bulldozer tacked on 15 touchdowns and a 6.3 yard per carry average to record one of the program’s all-time best seasons from a tailback.

247 Sports took note of Harris’s 2020 performance, and has listed the bruiser as one of the conference’s top 10 players ahead of next year. Harris comes in at No. 10 on the list, and is regarded as the SEC’s top player at his position. Here’s what analyst Brad Crawford had to say about the South Carolina running back.

"The SEC’s second-leading rusher last fall behind Alabama’s Najee Harris, Kevin Harris scored 15 touchdowns including a program record four during South Carolina’s game at Ole Miss. He averaged 6.3 yards per carry behind an offensive line that performed well at times, but its lead ballcarrier managed the heavy lifting. At 5-foot-10, 225 pounds, Harris is a human wrecking ball and rarely goes down at first contact. He’s a home-run threat too after his speed was questioned by many early on in his career. Along heralded 2020 signee Marshawn Lloyd, Harris gives the Gamecocks a workhorse in the backfield and a difference-maker who will be leaned on heavily during Shane Beamer’s first campaign."

Harris broke onto the scene as a freshman, tallying a six-carry, 147 yard performance in his debut versus Charleston Southern. He scored three touchdowns in that contest, but struggled through injuries and was forced to shut down his opening season after just five games.

As a sophomore, Harris was often overlooked by outsiders, most of whom pegged him to be second string on the depth chart. An offseason injury to MarShawn Lloyd allowed him to enter the starting lineup, and the rest is history. In a 10-game, all-SEC slate, Harris averaged 114 yards per contest, set a school record for rushing touchdowns in a game, and tallied two 200-yard performances.

Harris has been listed as the nation’s seventh-best draft eligible running back ahead of the 2022 NFL Draft. If he posts numbers like he did last season, he could be on his way to the next level sooner rather than later.