South Carolina Football: “No one’s touching my QB;” New OL has the right mentality in fall camp

South Carolina football added a group of unheralded offensive linemen through the transfer portal this offseason, but all four signees could be vitally important in 2023.

Jaxon Hughes (tackle) and Ni Mansell (guard) transferred as walk-ons from Charlotte and Mercer but bring some experience to the offensive line depth.

Nick Gargiulo (guard, center, tackle) was the captain at Yale and transferred in to compete at both guard and center. Gargiulo was called “the heart and soul” of the offensive line unit by fellow transfer offensive lineman Sidney Fugar, and Gargiulo is expected to start at left guard when the Gamecocks take on the North Carolina Tar Heels in Charlotte on September 2nd.

The fourth transfer lineman was former Western Illinois left tackle Sidney Fugar. Fugar is a massive man who appears to be even bigger than his measurables. Standing at 6’5″ and tipping the scales at around 330 pounds, Fugar looks like an SEC tackle.

And as he has shown so far in fall camp, Fugar might play like an SEC tackle, as well.

Fugar has fought his way up the depth chart and has taken more reps with the first-team than spring starter Tyshawn Wannamaker (Wannamaker has also gotten some first-team reps, just not as many as Fugar).

Fugar is a more natural pass protector than Wannamaker. He has a significant length advantage (6’5″ compared to 6’2″) and uses his long arms and thick lower body to halt pass rushers in their tracks. His size also helps him in run blocking, too, something the Gamecock front struggled to do consistently in 2022.

The big man from Maryland (yes, another South Carolina football player from the DMV area) also has the right mindset to play tackle in the SEC.

Fugar has dropped some sound bites that have Gamecock fans believing he could have what it takes to be the next great tackle in garnet and black.

Back in March during his first media availability as a Gamecock, Fugar described his play style as “hard-nosed, 60 minutes of hell” and said that “nothing I do is pretty.”

During a scuffle between teammates earlier in fall camp, Fugar separated the two angry players with a stern “alright, alright.” Those words might not seem like much, but they come across a little bit differently when they’re coming from someone the size of Fugar.

On Tuesday, he added to his catalog by claiming that “no one’s touching my QB” this season. That mentality is one that an offensive lineman must have in order to have success against the best pass rushers in college football.

The battle at right tackle for South Carolina football between Fugar and Wannamaker (and, potentially, even Cason Henry) is not over. However, the current favorite to win the job has the perfect mentality for one of the five men responsible for protecting Spencer Rattler in 2023.