South Carolina Gamecocks news from the last week in Columbia

The latest South Carolina Gamecocks news from the last week, starting with some updates around the South Carolina football team.

Wide receivers coach James Coley, who was brought in to upgrade the spot from Justin Stepp (causing Stepp to leave instead of accepting the tight ends job), is leaving to take the same job at the University of Georgia.

No news has surfaced regarding who might replace Coley in Columbia. Stepp's vacant position (after moving to tight ends and leaving for Illinois) was filled by former Gamecock assistant Shawn Elliott. There are plenty of intriguing wide receiver coaching names with ties to the Gamecocks and/or the state of South Carolina.

The football program made some news in recruiting, as well.

4-star defensive tackle Kevin Wynn named his top-10 schools, and South Carolina football made the cut.

The Gamecocks also locked in a ton of official visitors for the early summer. Some of the names included on the official visits list include blue chip players like Jaylen Gilchrist, JayDon Blair, Jontae Gilbert, Zayden Walker, Jared Smith, Juan Gaston, and Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng.

Four former Gamecocks made PFF's NFL Draft big board.

Xavier Legette (3rd round), Spencer Rattler (3rd round), Marcellas Dial (7th round), and Trey Knox (7th round) all were put in high enough positions on the big board to indicate that PFF believes they all will get drafted this April.

Xavier Legette brought home another award last week.

The annual Blanchard-Rogers Trophy (named after two Heisman Trophy winners related to the the state of South Carolina and the Gamecocks) was awarded to Legette. Sometimes called the "South Carolina Heisman," the trophy is given to the top college football player from the state or playing in the state.

Lamont Paris and the South Carolina basketball team bounced back from two losses the previous week to win big on the road over Ole Miss.

The 72-59 win for the Gamecocks was one in which they had control the whole game. The road victory like cements Carolina's place in the NCAA Tournament.

Speaking of Coach Paris...

The Naismith National Coach of the Year Award watch list was released, and Lamont Paris was one of the 15 coaches named to the list. He is one of the favorites to win the award.

Dawn Staley's women's team dominated two opponents to win the SEC regular season championship.

On Thursday, Carolina smacked the Alabama Crimson Tide by a score of 44-72. The win clinched at least a share of the SEC regular season title for the 8th time in the last 11 seasons for the Gamecocks.

On Sunday, "smacked" isn't a strong enough word to describe the domination the Gamecocks threw down on the Kentucky Wildcats. Winning 103-55, USC officially clinched the solo SEC championship.

Dawn Staley, unsurprisingly, made a national award watch list.

It was announced last week that Coach Staley was one of 15 coaches put on the Naismith National Coach of the Year list. She is one of the favorites to win the award.

Two former Gamecocks signed new WNBA contracts with the same team.

Wing Kaela Davis and post player Alaina Coates will be with the Seattle Storm in training camp with a chance to earn a full-time contract.

The South Carolina baseball team went 4-1 after sweeping the midweek and winning another weekend series.

The Gamecocks picked up two 10-run rule wins on Tuesday against Winthrop and Wednesday against Queens.

In a 3-game series against Belmont over the weekend, Carolina went 2-1. In games 1 and 3, they pitched well and hit well. In the game 2 loss, they didn't.

Two former Gamecocks made MLB Network's top-100 players.

Christian Walker slotted in at #58 on the list.

Jordan Montgomery was 90th.

Another former Gamecock has found a new MLB home.

TJ Hopkins was claimed off of waivers by the Detroit Tigers after a previous offseason trade sent him from Cincinnati to San Francisco.

South Carolina softball continued its hot start on the diamond.

Moving their overall record to 13-2, Carolina went 5-1 on the week.

Williams-Brice Stadium will host two English Premier League teams for a friendly.

During a 3-game USA tour known as the "Rivals in Red Tour," Liverpool and Manchester United will play at Williams-Brice Stadium in August. It will be the biggest professional soccer game in the stadium's history.

There was also some significant non-Gamecock news.

The College Football Playoff officially adopted the 5+7 format that will allow the top-5 ranked conference champions and top-7 ranked at-large teams to play in the CFP.

There has also been speculation (fueled by conversations from the College Football Playoff Committee) that the field could expand to 14 teams soon.

EA Sports officially began the process of signing NIL deals with players to put their names, images, and likenesses into EA Sports CFB25, which is set to release this summer.