The 2026 NFL Draft begins on Thursday, and former college players, including those from South Carolina, are hoping that their names will be called.
The South Carolina Gamecocks have produced a number of successful first-round draft picks, such as Sterling Sharpe, John Abraham, George Rogers and several others.
But what about late-round draft picks? Players who teams are able to select later in the draft, without having to use much capital, are considered to be steals.
South Carolina has had several players taken in the later rounds of the drafts that have gone on to have very successful NFL careers. Let's take a look at some of the biggest draft steals in South Carolina football history.
For this, we'll focus on players drafted anywhere from Rounds 3-7, and go in chronological order.
G Steve Courson: 5th round pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1977
Offensive lineman Steve Courson played from 1973-1977 at South Carolina. In his book titled "False Glory: The Steve Courson Story," released in 1991 after his NFL career was over, he admitted to taking steroids going into his sophomore season.
In the 1977 NFL Draft, Courson was selected in the fifth round by the Pittsburgh Steelers as the No. 125 overall pick. He was a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Steelers, in 1979 and 1980. He was with the Steelers for six seasons, finishing his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for two years. Across his eight-year NFL career from 1978-1985, he made 74 career starts.
He was outspoken about his use of steroids, and made hundreds of speeches to high school and college players about avoiding them. He tragically passed away at the age of 50 in 2005, following a tree-cutting accident at his home in Pennsylvania.
A look at South Carolina's most successful first-round draft picks
WR Robert Brooks: 3rd round pick by the Green Bay Packers in 1992
Robert Brooks played high school football in the state of South Carolina, and played for the Gamecocks from 1988-1991. Although he was recruited as a running back, he moved to receiver in Columbia. The move paid off. Over his four seasons, he had 154 receptions for 2,176 yards with 19 touchdowns.
He was drafted in the third round of the 1992 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers. He spent all but one season of his eight-year NFL career with the Packers. He won a Super Bowl with Green Bay during the 1996-97 season, although an ACL tear he suffered midseason cut his year short. He won the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year Award in 1997 after getting 1,010 receiving yards with seven touchdowns a year after the injury. He finished his career with 67 career starts, 4,276 receiving yards with 32 touchdowns. He combined for 1,826 return yards over his career, with two touchdowns.
RB Duce Staley: 3rd round pick by the Philadelphia Eagles in 1997
Duce Staley played high school football in West Columbia. During his senior season with the Gamecocks in 1996, he finished 13th in rushing yards nationally, getting 1,116 yards with nine touchdowns. He added 489 yards receiving with two touchdowns in his last two seasons with South Carolina, as well.
In the third round of the 1997 NFL draft, he was picked by the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 71 overall. He spent seven seasons with the Eagles, and rushed for 4,807 yards with 22 touchdowns in Philly. He finished his NFL career with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 2004-2006, and won a Super Bowl with the Steelers during the 2005 season.
After his playing days were over, he started working as a coaching intern with the Eagles in 2010, and was promoted to running backs coach in 2013. He remained on-staff in Philly through multiple coaching changes through the 2020 season, getting promoted to associate head coach in 2018. He has since coached for the Lions, Panthers and has been with the Browns since 2024.
WR Marcus Robinson: 4th round pick by the Chicago Bears in 1997
Marcus Robinson played high school football in Georgia, where he was a football and track star in Fort Valley. He played three seasons for South Carolina as a wide receiver. He had a breakout season as a senior in 1996, getting 21 receptions for 505 yards and a touchdown. He led both the FBS and SEC averaging 24 yards per catch.
He was drafted in the fourth round of the 1997 draft by the Chicago Bears with the No. 108 overall pick. But he missed his rookie season with a thumb injury, and played for the NFL Europe's Rhein Fire during the offseason. He led the NFL Europe in receiving yards and won the league's MVP Award, also helping bring a championship to the Rhein.
When he returned to the Bears in 1999, he set a franchise record 1,400 receiving yards that was later broken by Brandon Marshall in 2012. He spent another three seasons with the Bears, combining for just 1,251 yards and 10 touchdowns during those year. He spent the 2003 season with the Baltimore Ravens, and hauled in four of his six season touchdowns during an overtime win over the Seattle Seahawks. He spent the last three seasons of his career with the Vikings, accounting for 1,553 yards with 17 touchdowns.
He officially retired from the NFL in 2008. His nephew is former Chiefs and current 49ers wideout Demarcus Robinson.
TE Jared Cook: 3rd round pick by the Tennessee Titans in 2009
Jared Cook started his career at South Carolina as a wide receiver, but converted to tight end ahead of the 2007 season. The move paid off, as over his last two seasons in Columbia he had 67 receptions for 994 yards with six touchdowns.
In the 2009 NFL Draft, he was drafted in the third round with the No. 89 overall pick by the Tennessee Titans. Over his four seasons in Tennessee, he had 131 catches for 1,717 yards with eight touchdowns, averaging 13.1 yards per reception.
He then spent 2013-2015 with the Saint Louis Rams, getting 1,786 yards with eight scores over his three seasons. Following an unproductive season with the Green Bay Packers in 2016, he spent two seasons with the Oakland Raiders in 2017 and 2018. He earned a spot on his first Pro Bowl roster in 2018 after finishing with a career-high 101 catches for 896 yards with six touchdowns. He made the Pro Bowl again in 2019 with the New Orleans Saints, finishing with 705 receiving yards and a career-high nine touchdowns.
He spent 2020 with the Saints, and was on the Los Angeles Chargers' 2021 roster, the last time he was on an NFL team.
CB Captain Munnerlyn: 7th round pick by the Carolina Panthers in 2009
South Carolina is a finalist for elite 4-star receiver
Captain Munnerlyn played three seasons for the Gamecocks from 2006-08. Across his three seasons, he finished with 127 total tackles with five interceptions, including two sacks and two forced fumbles.
During the 2009 NFL Draft, he had to wait until the seventh round to hear his name called, by a nearby team in the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers took him with the 216th overall pick.
Munnerlyn went on to enjoy a 10-year NFL career, with Carolina and the Minnesota Vikings from 2014-2016. He actually spent a total of seven seasons with the Panthers across two stints, from 2009-2013 and then ending his career in Carolina from 2017-18. In 2013, he led the league with two interceptions returned for touchdowns. He finished his NFL career having played in 154 games, accounting for 12 interceptions with five forced fumbles, nine takeaways recovered and 10 sacks.
K Ryan Succop: 7th round pick by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2009
Ryan Succop might be the biggest draft steal of them all. In 2009, he was the draft's "Mr. Irrelevant," the title given to the last pick in the NFL every year.
Before earning that nickname, Succop had quite the successful kicking career at South Carolina. Over his four seasons in Columbia, he made 49 of his 69 field goal attempts, and led the SEC with his 20 field goals made as a senior in 2008. He left South Carolina as 10th on South Carolina's all-time list for career points (251).
Succop was picked by Kansas City in the seventh round, where he spent the first five seasons of his career, making 119 of his 147 field goal attempts (81%), including nine made beyond 50 yards. He was selected to the PFWA All-Rookie team his first year there. He then spent six seasons with the Titans from 2014-2019, making 83.6% of his kicks, including 11 beyond 50.
He finished his career from 2020-2022 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he helped give Tom Brady a Super Bowl in 2021. As the Bucs beat the Chiefs 31-9, Succop made all four of Tampa's extra points, including a 52-yard field goal in the third quarter. He was released by the Bucs in 2023, and Succop enjoyed a 14-year NFL career.
WR Pharoh Cooper: 4th round pick by the Los Angeles Rams in 2016
Pharoh Cooper played three seasons for the South Carolina Gamecocks, from 2013-2015. His best season came during South Carolina's 2014 season, when he had 69 receptions for 1,136 yards with nine touchdowns, adding another 200 yards rushing with two scores. His junior season in 2015, he finished with 973 yards receiving with eight touchdowns, including 111 rush yards.
He flashed his playmaking versatility at South Carolina, as he also returned punts for the Gamecocks, and had four career touchdown passes. He was named a First-team All-SEC player in each of his last two seasons.
Although Cooper was projected as a third-round draft pick during the 2016 NFL Draft, his name wasn't called until the fourth round by the Los Angeles Rams. They picked him No. 117 overall, and he spent the first three seasons with the Rams.
In 2017 during his second season in Los Angeles, he was a first-team All-Pro after he replaced an injured Tavon Austin on kick and punt returns. He led the league with 27.4 yards per return that season, including a 103-yard punt return that gave him his first NFL touchdown. He finished the season with 1,331 combined return yards, and made a Pro Bowl that season.
From 2018-2022, he saw playing time on various teams, including the Cardinals, Bengals, Panthers and Giants. In 2019 he finished with 25 receptions for 243 yards and touchdowns with both Arizona and Cincinnati. During his seven-year NFL career, he was primarily an electric kick and punt returner, getting a total of 230 returns, averaging 23.6 yards per kick return.
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