South Carolina football coach Shane Beamer and his Gamecock coaching staff have done a good job recruiting for the class of 2024.
The transfer portal has been extremely kind to the Gamecocks. Carolina ranks in the top-5 of all programs in the transfer portal team recruiting rankings according to both On3 and 247Sports.
High school recruiting has gone well, too. Firmly inside the top-20 of both On3 and 247Sports' high school recruiting rankings, the Gamecocks have two 5-stars committed in the class for just the second time in the modern recruiting era. 247 rates 10 Gamecock commitments as blue chips (4-star or 5-star prospects), and On3 rates 11 of USC pledges as blue chippers.
One of those 4-star prospects is Virginia linebacker Fred "JayR" Johnson. A linebacker, EDGE rusher, tight end, and wide receiver for Maury High School in Norfolk Virginia, Johnson is a physical specimen. At 6'3" and 225 pounds, he runs in 4.5s in the 40-yard dash, broad jumps 9'8" (better than most NFL Combine linebackers), and hang cleans 320 pounds.
That physical giftedness allows Johnson to perform well all over the field for Maury, and over the weekend, he racked up some well-deserved awards for his on-field excellence.
According to a post on his Twitter/X account, Johnson was named the Virginia's All-State First Team as both a tight end and an all-purpose defensive player (primarily LB and EDGE). He also was named Virginia Easter District Defensive Player of the Year. Even before his monstrous senior season, Johnson was named an All-American, and he will play in the All-American Bowl in January.
Blessed to be named
— Fred “JayR” Johnson (@FredJohnson9_) December 18, 2023
1st Team All State TE
1st Team All Purpose Defense
Defensive Player of the Year 🥇 pic.twitter.com/nYgDlscQ9s
Johnson is one of two linebackers that are committed to the Gamecocks in the 2024 class. Fellow 4-star prospect Wendell Gregory is the other, and like Johnson, Gregory has some serious pass rush chops that could see him get some run at EDGE, as well.
Johnson and his Maury squad also went undefeated this season and won the Virginia class-5 state championship.
You can watch some of his film here.