A look at the wide receiver position for the 2024 South Carolina football team

One position group with a lot of question marks for Shane Beamer's South Carolina football team is wide receiver. While many around the Gamecocks are optimistic about the receiver room heading into the fall, there are no receivers on the roster who have had much proven production at USC as more known commodities Xavier Legette (NFL), Ahmarean Brown (NFL), O'Mega Blake (transfer portal, East Carolina Pirates and Charlotte 49ers), and Juice Wells (transfer portal, Ole Miss Rebels) are no longer with the program.

Multiple offseason coaching changes saw Justin Stepp shift out of the wide receiver coaching gig before leaving the team altogether, James Coley work for the program for about 45 days, and then NFL veteran Mike Furrey take over the job.

The personnel on the field will be much different, as well. Carolina brought in five transfers and two freshmen at wide receiver, and there is a real chance that five or six of those players make an impact this season as weapons for quarterback LaNorris Sellers.

Here's a preview of what the wide receiver position could be like for the 2024 version of the South Carolina football team.

Projected Starters: Vandrevius Jacobs, Dalevon Campbell, Gage Larvadain
Could Also Play: Mazeo Bennett, Jared Brown, Nyck Harbor, Ahmari Huggins-Bruce, Luke Doty, Tyshawn Russell
Names to Watch for the Future: Tyshawn Russell, Mazeo Bennett, Debron Gatling, Elijah Caldwell, CJ Adams
***Projecting starters for this group is nearly impossible due to all the new faces

Frankly, an accurate prediction on the three primary starters at wide receiver is only possible through guesswork as the position group is full of a lot of good football players but none who have been major contributors for the South Carolina football program.

Vandrevius Jacobs is a redshirt freshman who transferred in from Florida State, and he has been really good this summer. The Florida native was an underrated prospect out of high school and has big-time athletic ability. He is a quick route-runner and plays bigger than his 6'0" frame. There is a world in which Jacobs doesn't start this fall, but he is a virtual lock to get plenty of chances out wide.

One of five transfer receivers (and one of two who enrolled this summer), Dalevon Campbell is big (6'4" and 220 pounds) and runs pretty well. Coming from a horrendous Nevada Wolfpack offense, he still had over 1000 yards combined over the past two seasons and is hopeful to build off of that success now that he is a Gamecock. Like Jacobs, Campbell is going to play this fall even if he doesn't start.

Gage Larvadain is the smallest of the new transfer portal additions, standing just 5'9" and weighing 180 pounds. However, he has elite quickness and really good speed, traits that led him to nice numbers while playing for the Miami (OH) RedHawks. A major candidate to start in the slot this fall, Larvadain has extensive experience on downfield shots and operating in the underneath game and will factor into the receiver rotation in some way.

Mazeo Bennett, a 4-star true freshman, is battling for the starting gig in the slot, as well, and the Greenville High School product has impressed since enrolling in the winter. Listed at 5'11" and 185 pounds, Bennett doesn't look like an outside receiver, but he has the ball skills and aggressive nature that would allow him to play out wide if needed, too.

Junior transfer Jared Brown (Coastal Carolina Chanticleers) will play a lot this fall. He logged over 950 yards from scrimmage in both 2022 and 2023 as he totaled over 1500 receiving yards and nearly 450 more on the ground. He can play on the outside or inside at the slot and will be asked to do a variety of things for offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains' unit this fall.

The most famous receiver on the roster is Nyck Harbor. The all-world sprinter elected not to go to the Olympic Trials earlier this summer to focus more on football, and Gamecock fans are hopeful it will translate to a breakout year. As one of two projected contributors taller than 6'1" (along with Dalevon Campbell), Harbor will have opportunities to contribute in multiple ways this fall and will have all eyes on him when steps on the field.

Ahmari Huggins-Bruce was a rotational wideout at Louisville the last three seasons and was a consistent performer as a third or fourth option. It remains to be seen if he will push that far up the depth chart of the Gamecocks, but the Palmetto State native is likely to be involved at some point this fall.

Luke Doty is listed as an athlete on the official South Carolina football roster, but he will get most of his reps at wide receiver, probably in the slot. The young man has been a great teammate and Gamecock during his time in garnet and black, and he will get some time in the offense. Doty is a candidate to get the ball on some gadget plays, too, just like he did on his touchdown-scoring run against the rival Clemson Tigers last year.

Flashing some elite athleticism, Tyshawn Russell struggled with drops and confidence last season, but if he can overcome his 2023 issues, he could turn into a good college receiver. This year, it will be difficult for any player to climb the depth chart thanks to all the new talent. Even so, it should surprise no one if Russell flashes with some big-time plays in 2024.

CJ Adams and Elijah Caldwell are redshirt freshmen who could become future factors in Columbia, and true freshman Debron Gatling is another name to pay attention to for the future.

There are just 16 days left until South Carolina football fans will descend upon Williams-Brice Stadium for the season opener against the Old Dominion Monarchs.