The Early Signing Period for college football began on Wednesday, and National Letters of Intent have been flying in from all over the country. While most of those NLIs are not sent in via fax machine anymore, commitments are not official until paperwork is completed. The South Carolina football program is hoping to have most of their class secured by the end of the Early Signing Period.
One of the players in the class who made things official is 4-star transfer EDGE Kyle Kennard.
Welcome home, @KyleKennard1! pic.twitter.com/gGZr1lNZit
— Gamecock Football (@GamecockFB) December 20, 2023
Position: EDGE
Recruiting Ranking: 4 stars (247Sports), 3 stars (On3)
Measurables: 6'5"; 240 pounds; 4.7-second 40-yard dash
Former Player Comp: Jordan Strachan
Kyle Kennard was exactly what the Gamecocks needed. South Carolina football did not get enough pressure on opposing quarterbacks in 2023, and the defensive end position was one of the main reasons why.
Kennard should offer some quick juice to the pass rush efforts for the Carolina defense. He has nice explosion off the ball and his plus-length allows him to keep blockers off-balance and to reach around them to grab unsuspecting quarterbacks.
Kennard resembles former Gamecock Jordan Strachan who just played his final game in November. Strachan was a good athlete with good length who was a bit undersized but played bigger than he was. Kennard showed similar traits at Georgia Tech and should be able to provide the Gamecocks with a player who can fill the Strachan role in 2024.
Early playing time will be available to the Yellow Jacket defection. The Gamecocks have a lot of defensive tackles, but the defensive end room is light, especially when considering players who can play the spot in the 3-3-5. Kennard can help out on early downs, but his biggest contributions likely will come on 3rd down as he gets after the passer.
You can watch some of his film here.