South Carolina Football: 5 players whose stock is rising for the Gamecocks

Shane Beamer’s South Carolina football team is loaded with young talent. A large number of underclassmen are starting for the Gamecocks, and several more play important roles off the bench.

If college football players had stocks associated with their value to football teams, the sheer number of young contributors on the South Carolina football roster would make the Gamecocks a pretty interesting stock market team.

Because the stock market is primarily about future gains, this list will be mostly for young players who are trending upward and could see even more growth in the future. But which Gamecock youngsters should fans be buying stock in before its too late?

Honorable Mention

Mario Anderson: Playing behind starting running back DK Joyner, Mario Anderson hasn’t gotten a lot of carries so far in 2023, but he has been the most impressive runner for the Gamecocks this fall. The poor run blocking up front by the USC offensive line has cut into all the running backs’ numbers, but Anderson leads the unit in yards per carry, and he runs harder and with more aggressiveness than any other player on the team.

Trovon Baugh: Trovon Baugh is “the other freshman” on the Gamecock offensive line. Unlike his counterpart Tree Babalade, Baugh has not started a game yet for the garnet and black. However, when he has rotated into the game, he has performed better than the starting interior linemen, so it seems only a matter of time before the Georgia native earns his way to more snaps.

Baugh is a tough, road-grading type of guard who plays with a mean streak. Near the goal line in week 2, Baugh had a huge pancake block that helped spring a big gain that led to a touchdown on the next snap. Even with a great offensive line class coming in the 2024 cycle, fans can expect Baugh to be a real option as an effective long-term starter up front.

Nick Emmanwori and DQ Smith: The Gamecocks had a pair of Freshman All-American safeties in 2022 as Nick Emmanwori and DQ Smith were very good last season. The dynamic defensive backfield duo has been even better so far in 2023. Emmanwori missed most of the first two games with injury but was amazing against Georgia in a losing effort. Smith has been a very consistent tackler on a defense that has needed the help in run support.

The metaphoric stock prices on Nick Emmanwori and DQ Smith were already pretty high based on their strong first year in garnet and black, but the Columbia natives continue to prove that they are a big part of the future.

Tyshawn Russell: Tyshawn Russell hasn’t played much. The true freshman wideout saw his first game action against Furman and caught two passes, including a 50-yard bomb from fellow freshman LaNorris Sellers for a touchdown. Russell did not play against Georgia. However, after the game, Shane Beamer said that the offense has to play Russell (and Nyck Harbor) more because they are too good to keep off the field.

Upperclassmen Who Deserve A Shoutout

Spencer Rattler: Spencer Rattler is not a young player, so he doesn’t quite qualify for this list. However, he has been so good in 2023 that he deserves at least a mention. The former Oklahoma Sooner has always been known as one of the most talented quarterbacks in college football, but now as a senior in Columbia, he is putting it all together.

Rattler ranks in the top-10 in the nation in passing yardage and has completed over 70% of his passes despite very poor pass protection from his offensive line for most of the season. At times running for his life, Rattler has seen his NFL stock rise considerably in the early goings of the young season.

Xavier Legette: In a very similar vein to Spencer Rattler, Xavier Legette is not a young player, but he is playing the best ball of his career right now. He has always had elite measurables (6’3″ and 220 pounds while running a 4.4 in the 40-yard dash), but the production has never been there until now. XL is in the top-10 in receiving yards in college football and has won five 50-50 balls on passes thrown downfield (the most in the SEC), making him a top deep threat in the league.

Debo Williams: Debo Williams has been a revelation for the Gamecocks at linebacker, but, like Rattler and Legette, he is an upperclassman. It’s a little too late to buy stock in Williams, but #0 has moved from being a hard-hitter to being a good linebacker. He leads the Gamecocks in tackles and has logged double-digit stops in two of the team’s three contests so far this season.

O’Donnell Fortune: Another upperclassman playing his best football is cornerback O’Donnell Fortune. Now in his fourth year with the South Carolina football program, Fortune has become a quality starter at corner despite having limited experience coming into the year. He has been good in coverage and in run support from the defensive backfield.