South Carolina Football family adds Gamecock brother via transfer portal

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 3-star transfer portal defensive back Gerald Kilgore.

Position: S/Nickel
Recruiting Ranking: 3 stars (247Sports), Unranked (On3)
Measurables: 6'0"; 200 pounds; 4.5-second 40-yard dash; 35" vertical; 290-pound bench; 500-pound squat
Former (Current) Player Comp: Jalon Kilgore

Gerald Kilgore is joining the South Carolina football program after transferring from Tennessee Tech. After redshirt in 2022, he earned a big role part of the way through the 2023 season at TTU. Like his younger brother Jalon, big brother Gerald plays safety and nickel and enjoys coming downhill to aid in run support.

Against the pass, Kilgore is getting better. As a high school quarterback, he has an understanding of coverages, and he got better and better over the course of last season as his snaps increased for the Golden Eagles.

This might seem like cheating, but Kilgore plays very similarly to his brother. Jalon Kilgore was a Freshman All-American this fall, so the comparison might be a lofty one, but stylistically, the similarities are there. Solid tackling and improving coverage skills are shared traits within the family.

Early playing time might be hard to come by in the Gamecock secondary next season unless Kilgore can factor in at the nickel spot. Three Carolina safeties have been named Freshman All-Americans over the past two seasons, so those spots won't be easy to infiltrate. Special teams coordinator Pete Lembo will be happy to use Gerald Kilgore, however, as he can run and is a good tackler, the perfect profile for kick coverage units.

You can watch some of his film here. (Most of his highlights are at quarterback as he didn't move to DB full-time until getting to college.)