Former South Carolina star playmaker reveals who he believes will step up for Gamecocks as he heads to the 2025 NFL Draft
The South Carolina Gamecocks just put together their best season in the College Football Playoff era in 2024. Shane Beamer finally got his team of incredible talents to play up to (or near) their potential and the Gamecocks finished the year ranked 15th in the nation, just on the outside of the playoff looking in.Now […]
The South Carolina Gamecocks just put together their best season in the College Football Playoff era in 2024. Shane Beamer finally got his team of incredible talents to play up to (or near) their potential and the Gamecocks finished the year ranked 15th in the nation, just on the outside of the playoff looking in.
Now that many of those star players are headed to the NFL, can South Carolina repeat or exceed last season's performance? Joshua Simon, last season's star tight end and the focal point of the Gamecocks' receiving offense certainly seems to think so.
When I caught up with Joshua Simon at the NFL Combine I was thoroughly impressed, but that shouldn't surprise Gamecocks fans. He spent some time talking about how all of the different schemes he got to play in helped prepare him for the NFL, including the pro system that Dowell Loggains ran over the past two years at South Carolina.
Simon could have spent plenty of time going on about himself, but he instead in most cases just deferred to the teammates and coaches like Shane Beamer around him for his immense success throughout his college career.
And when I asked him about expectations for 2025 and beyond at South Carolina, including which players he expected to break out and star this season, he was incredibly bullish on a ton of returning talents. Most of the names fans would know, but one interesting offensive mention stood out.
Everyone has high hopes for quarterback LaNorris Sellers and his dynamic wide receiver duo of Mazeo Bennett and Nyck Harbor who both began to break out some in 2024. But Jawarn Howell, a a young returning running back talent for South Carolina who only garnered 20 touches last season, was a surprising name Simon seemed especially high on.
Now that Raheim "Rocket" Sanders is gone, South Carolina needs a new face to step up at running back. The Utah State transfer Rahsul Faison and the ancient veteran Oscar Adaway likely get the first looks, but Howell, just a third year who transferred up from South Carolina State might actually surprise as a younger more explosive player.
The Gamecocks are going to need plenty of new playmakers to step up this year given all the departing talent. And not just on offense either. All-American safety Nick Emmanwori and the majority of the defensive front in Kyle Kennard, T.J. Sanders, and Tonka Hemingway are all gone.
Hopefully stud sophomore Dylan Stewart can set the tone as he'll likely be one of the best edge rushers in the entire nation while Jalon Kilgore, Vicari Swain (both mentioned by Simon), and other veterans lock down the back end of the defense. Given the Gamecocks' tough schedule in the back half of 2025 with LSU, Alabama, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, and Clemson making up five of their last seven games, South Carolina is going to need them.
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We'll be back with more South Carolina Gamecocks coverage here at A to Z Sports soon! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!
If you want to look back on some of the special plays Joshua Simon made in his Gamecocks career just check out his 2024 highlights in the video below!
