South Carolina Football: Gamecock captain makes local NFL roster

South Carolina football had five players drafted in the 2023 NFL Draft. Of the five, only one of them was a multi-year captain for the Gamecocks.

Offensive lineman Jovaughn Gwyn was an All-SEC performer as a senior in 2022, and he was a team captain for the South Carolina football program for both the 2021 and 2022 seasons.

Gwyn was part of the USC program for five seasons and was a major contributor on the offensive line as a four-year starter who spent almost all of his career as a guard. That “almost” is key, however, as Gwyn’s limited action at center has helped him earn a spot on an active NFL roster.

After being taken in the 7th round of this year’s draft by the Atlanta Falcons, Gwyn had a strong training camp in which he repped at guard and center for the second-closest NFL franchise to Columbia.

Gwyn got the majority of his work in the NFL preseason at center and appears to have locked up the backup role in Atlanta. Gwyn’s versatility makes him an even more intriguing roster addition as most backup linemen in the NFL must be able to play multiple positions due to roster sizes (just 53 players on the active roster).

Now, he is officially part of the team as a reserve lineman. He will continue to compete with 2021 draft pick Drew Dalman for the starting job. Dalman has more experience with the team, but he has only been the starter for one season (2022), and the results were mixed. Dalman’s struggles at times last season leave the door partially open for Gwyn if he continues to perform well.

Gwyn making the active roster for the Falcons despite being a 7th-round pick is a commendable achievement. About 30% of 7th rounders make an NFL roster, and less than 10% of them make the active roster with the team that drafted them.