by South Carolina is 4-3 this season and is just a few games away from 6-1. The improvement from a 5-7 2023 season is obvious, and the main reason for the improvement is the strong play of the Gamecock defense this fall.
The Gamecock defense has played so well, in fact, that the unit has three players who were recently derided as first-round NFL draft picks. Defensive tackle TJ Sanders, safety Nick Emmanwori and EDGE Kyle Kennard were great in 2024. The great trio was recently included in several CBS Sports mock drafts. It’s worth noting that while Kennard is graduating, Sanders and Emmanwori will have another year of college eligibility available.
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CBS’s Ryan Wilson, Chris Trapasso and Mike Renner all have TJ Sanders as a first-round pick in their latest mocks. The CBS trio also all listed Sanders as the 30th overall pick in the draft. In Wilson’s hypothesis, the Houston Texans select the Palmetto State native. According to Trapasso, the Minnesota Vikings will choose Sanders. Renner predicts the San Francisco 49ers will take him in that spot. The Texans, 49ers and Vikings use 3-4 defensive lineups, allowing the athletic Sanders to play tackle, end or both. A first-round selection of Sanders would make USC’s first defensive tackle taken that high since the San Francisco 49ers selected Javon Kinlaw 14th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Another CBS mock draft, this one from Blake Brockermeyer, has Nick Emmanwori and Kyle Kennard among the top picks.
Brockermeyer predicts Kennard will go to the Denver Broncos with the 21st pick of April’s draft. Denver has a creative multiple defense, so Kennard could play as a defensive end or stand-up rusher if acquired by Denver. If selected in the first round, Kennard would be the first Gamecock EDGE first-rounder since Jadeveon Clowney (first to the Houston Texans in 2014).
The CBS analyst expects Emmanwori to go to the Baltimore Ravens at No. 24 three picks later. Emmanwori’s ability to play both safety spots, operate in the box and drop back in coverage would fit well with a Baltimore defense that requires its safeties to do a lot. Jaycee Horn (8th to the Carolina Panthers in 2021) was the last Gamecock defenseman taken in the No. 1 pick.
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The South Carolina football program has had multiple first-round picks in the NFL Draft only twice. In 1981, Heisman Trophy-winning running back George Rogers was selected first overall by the New Orleans Saints. Tight end Willie Scott was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs later in the round. In 2012, cornerback Stephon Gilmore and EDGE Melvin Ingram went 10th to the Buffalo Bills and 18th to the San Diego Chargers, respectively. The Gamecocks have never had three first-rounders in one year.
