South Carolina football captain named Wuerffel Trophy nominee

With fall camp beginning for the Gamecocks (and most of the rest of the country) this week, preseason awards watch lists has been a major topic of conversation this week. Several South Carolina football stars have found themselves included on these lists as linebacker Debo Williams (Bronko Nagurski Trophy), Hunter Rogers (Patrick Mannelly Award), and Rocket Sanders (Maxwell Award) already have found themselves on some of these lists.

There will be a few other Gamecocks who make these watch lists before the preseason is over, and on Thursday, there was another.

One of the leaders of the South Carolina football program also received some preseason adulation as defensive tackle Alex "Boogie" Huntley was named a nominee for the Wuerffel Trophy.

The Wuerffel Trophy is awarded each year to the player who best combines community impact and leadership ability on and off the field. It is named after 1996 Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel, who, as the quarterback of the Florida Gators under former South Carolina football coach Steve Spurrier, was known as a player of tremendous character and leadership.

Huntley has made the SEC Academic Honor Roll all four of his years in college, and, now, the 5th-year senior is entering his second year as a team captain. A two-time winner already of the Spirit Award for the Gamecock defense, Huntley will be an important piece of the deepest position group on the team at defensive tackle. According to the official press release from Gamecocksonline.com, Huntley has worked with Habitat for Humanity, the annual backpack drive alongside the Beamer Family Foundation, and Shop with Jocks.

During his South Carolina football career, Boogie Huntley has been a solid contributor for several years and has logged 3 sacks and 6 more tackles for loss. His best game came against the Mississippi State Bulldogs in 2023 when he had 2 sacks, 2 tackles for loss, and 2 passes defended, earning him SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week honors. The Columbia product also caught a touchdown pass on a trick play against the Vanderbilt Commodores.