South Carolina’s comfort, consistency the right recipe for commit Jaylen Nichols, family
January 28, 2018
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – For Angela Wright, consistency was key in South Carolina’s recruitment of her son, 2019 offensive tackle Jaylen Nichols.
The 6-foot-5, 300-pound prospect from Myers Park High School in Charlotte committed to the Gamecocks in December.
“From my perspective, I feel very comfortable with dropping my son off there when he goes,” Wright said. “Just the love that they’ve shown, the information they’ve given, the consistency that they’ve shown us. It has been very heartwarming.
“We’ve been to a couple of other schools and there was just something different about South Carolina that made me feel very comfortable.
“Just the structure that they have. I saw a lot more information that I needed this weekend with the academics,” she said, following a visit to campus for the program’s junior day last weekend. “… And just how they operate, they get the guys going and make sure that they’re accountable. I enjoyed all of that.”
Offensive line coach Eric Wolford has served as the primary recruiter, but coach Will Muschamp is also involved.
“They’ve been great. They’ve communicated a lot and just made us feel really welcome. That shows that’s who they are, because they haven’t changed,” Wright said.
Working his way back
Nichols has been on the mend from injury in 2018, but he should be ready to roll before the start of his senior season.
He sustained the injury, which included a torn rotator cuff and some ligament damage, at the end of his junior season. Nichols had surgery a few weeks ago and will be in a sling for about a month.
Rehab will last through spring, but he should be 100 percent and ready to roll in June.
“Every time somebody touches it, it hurts, but other than that, it’s fine,” Nichols said. “I can’t put my hands in my pockets. … I make it work.”
He’s also trying to make things work academically so he can graduate early and enroll at South Carolina next January. Schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools system won’t finish the first semester until 2019, after South Carolina starts the spring semester.
But Nichols and his mother said they believe he’ll be able pull it off and be at South Carolina by this time next year.
South Carolina recruiting visit
The Gamecocks hosted Nichols and several prospects from the 2019 class last Saturday for a junior day event. While in Columbia, he met 3-star quarterback Garrett Shrader, who’s also from Charlotte.
“I’ll try to get him. I’ll see what I can do,” Nichols said, when asked if he would try to recruit Shrader to join him.
Also in Nichols’ cross-hairs: 4-star defensive end Curtis Fann Jr., whom he met last summer during Muschamp Camp, when the Gamecocks offered him.
For Nichols, the trip went well.
“It was more of the academic stuff that weekend, so we talked about classes and transitioning from high school to college,” he said.
Nichols is considering several majors, he said: architecture, international business, business, real estate, sports science and environmental health.
January 28, 2018
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – For Angela Wright, consistency was key in South Carolina’s recruitment of her son, 2019 offensive tackle Jaylen Nichols.
The 6-foot-5, 300-pound prospect from Myers Park High School in Charlotte committed to the Gamecocks in December.
“From my perspective, I feel very comfortable with dropping my son off there when he goes,” Wright said. “Just the love that they’ve shown, the information they’ve given, the consistency that they’ve shown us. It has been very heartwarming.
“We’ve been to a couple of other schools and there was just something different about South Carolina that made me feel very comfortable.
“Just the structure that they have. I saw a lot more information that I needed this weekend with the academics,” she said, following a visit to campus for the program’s junior day last weekend. “… And just how they operate, they get the guys going and make sure that they’re accountable. I enjoyed all of that.”
Offensive line coach Eric Wolford has served as the primary recruiter, but coach Will Muschamp is also involved.
“They’ve been great. They’ve communicated a lot and just made us feel really welcome. That shows that’s who they are, because they haven’t changed,” Wright said.
Working his way back
Nichols has been on the mend from injury in 2018, but he should be ready to roll before the start of his senior season.
He sustained the injury, which included a torn rotator cuff and some ligament damage, at the end of his junior season. Nichols had surgery a few weeks ago and will be in a sling for about a month.
Rehab will last through spring, but he should be 100 percent and ready to roll in June.
“Every time somebody touches it, it hurts, but other than that, it’s fine,” Nichols said. “I can’t put my hands in my pockets. … I make it work.”
He’s also trying to make things work academically so he can graduate early and enroll at South Carolina next January. Schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools system won’t finish the first semester until 2019, after South Carolina starts the spring semester.
But Nichols and his mother said they believe he’ll be able pull it off and be at South Carolina by this time next year.
South Carolina recruiting visit
The Gamecocks hosted Nichols and several prospects from the 2019 class last Saturday for a junior day event. While in Columbia, he met 3-star quarterback Garrett Shrader, who’s also from Charlotte.
“I’ll try to get him. I’ll see what I can do,” Nichols said, when asked if he would try to recruit Shrader to join him.
Also in Nichols’ cross-hairs: 4-star defensive end Curtis Fann Jr., whom he met last summer during Muschamp Camp, when the Gamecocks offered him.
For Nichols, the trip went well.
“It was more of the academic stuff that weekend, so we talked about classes and transitioning from high school to college,” he said.
Nichols is considering several majors, he said: architecture, international business, business, real estate, sports science and environmental health.