Lance Thompson lays out South Carolina football recruiting goals
May 20, 2016
Line coach recruited Will Muschamp out of high school
Staff aims to have 8 to 10 NFL-level players per class
Thompson calls Elliott a ‘class act’ through transition
GEORGETOWN South Carolina defensive line coach Lance Thompson first met Will Muschamp on the recruiting trail.
Thompson was an assistant at Georgia Tech. Muschamp was the recruit.
The future South Carolina head coach turned down Thompson and Bobby Ross’ Jackets for a spot at Georgia. But that interaction, a coach trying to bring in the best players he can, will be a bedrock for the Gamecocks going forward.
“We have got to be relentless recruiting,” Thompson told the Georgetown Gamecock Club on Thursday evening. “We have got to do a great job finding the right kind of kids that can be developed into the right kind of players.”
Thompson knows a thing or two about that after spending long stretches on Nick Saban’s perenially-successful recruiting staffs and earning one nod as a recruiter of the year from ESPN in 2014.
The line coach went on to lay out the simplest framework for the program’s larger aims. Pointing to the recently-completed NFL Draft, he said the team wants to have eight to 10 players each year with a chance to make an NFL roster.
Multiply that across four or five classes and that’s nearly half the scholarship roster of pro-caliber talent.
The reasons are obvious, but Thompson fell back on some Kentucky lineage to hammer the point home.
“There’s never been a donkey win the Kentucky Derby,” Thompson said. “I’m saying that to say this: We’ve got to get some cats that can play.”
The Saban tree
Thompson took on a certain tone when he reminisced about Saban, his former boss. He talked about the approach, how Saban was the gold standard for coaching in college football and someone many coaches aspire to emulate, but there was something more.
His words pointed to a camaraderie from the group, coaches who’d worked together to support one of the most demanding bosses in the business and took something with them.
“We all kind of fell from the tree of Nick Saban,” Thompson said. “We were all together at LSU. We won a national championship at LSU. Guys, Nick’s a wonderful coach. He’s a fabulous coach.
“The thing you see with Nick, you’re going to see with Will, you’re going to see with me, you’re going to see with (defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson).”
Praise for Elliott
▪ Thompson paid special note to the way offensive line coach Shawn Elliott came through the coaching transition. Thompson said it’s not an easy spot being the only holdover on a new staff, but Elliott was a “class act,” making himself a resource for the rest of the coaches so they could hit the ground running.
May 20, 2016
Line coach recruited Will Muschamp out of high school
Staff aims to have 8 to 10 NFL-level players per class
Thompson calls Elliott a ‘class act’ through transition
GEORGETOWN South Carolina defensive line coach Lance Thompson first met Will Muschamp on the recruiting trail.
Thompson was an assistant at Georgia Tech. Muschamp was the recruit.
The future South Carolina head coach turned down Thompson and Bobby Ross’ Jackets for a spot at Georgia. But that interaction, a coach trying to bring in the best players he can, will be a bedrock for the Gamecocks going forward.
“We have got to be relentless recruiting,” Thompson told the Georgetown Gamecock Club on Thursday evening. “We have got to do a great job finding the right kind of kids that can be developed into the right kind of players.”
Thompson knows a thing or two about that after spending long stretches on Nick Saban’s perenially-successful recruiting staffs and earning one nod as a recruiter of the year from ESPN in 2014.
The line coach went on to lay out the simplest framework for the program’s larger aims. Pointing to the recently-completed NFL Draft, he said the team wants to have eight to 10 players each year with a chance to make an NFL roster.
Multiply that across four or five classes and that’s nearly half the scholarship roster of pro-caliber talent.
The reasons are obvious, but Thompson fell back on some Kentucky lineage to hammer the point home.
“There’s never been a donkey win the Kentucky Derby,” Thompson said. “I’m saying that to say this: We’ve got to get some cats that can play.”
The Saban tree
Thompson took on a certain tone when he reminisced about Saban, his former boss. He talked about the approach, how Saban was the gold standard for coaching in college football and someone many coaches aspire to emulate, but there was something more.
His words pointed to a camaraderie from the group, coaches who’d worked together to support one of the most demanding bosses in the business and took something with them.
“We all kind of fell from the tree of Nick Saban,” Thompson said. “We were all together at LSU. We won a national championship at LSU. Guys, Nick’s a wonderful coach. He’s a fabulous coach.
“The thing you see with Nick, you’re going to see with Will, you’re going to see with me, you’re going to see with (defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson).”
Praise for Elliott
▪ Thompson paid special note to the way offensive line coach Shawn Elliott came through the coaching transition. Thompson said it’s not an easy spot being the only holdover on a new staff, but Elliott was a “class act,” making himself a resource for the rest of the coaches so they could hit the ground running.