It’s national signing day in Columbia, and South Carolina football will add letters of intent from 2024 class members throughout the day.

The latest prospect to officially ink with South Carolina football is four star tight end Michael Smith.

[LIMITED TIME ONLY: Get GamecockCentral for 50% off: In-depth coverage and a great community]

The On3 Industry Ranking tabs Smith as a four-star tight end, the number 107 prospect in the counry, and as the tenth-best prospect nationally at his position.

Here is more on the newest addition for readers of GamecockCentral.com:

South Carolina Gamecocks Recruiter: Jody Wright

Other Offers: Florida, Ohio State, Alabama, Florida State, Texas, Miami, Oklahoma, Auburn, Tennessee, Penn State, Michigan, Nebraska, Kentucky, Arkansas, Mississippi State, UCF, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Pitt, Louisville, Cincinnati, USF, West Virginia, Michigan State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Boston College, Georgia State, and Middle Tennessee State

Why South Carolina? “The communication was always there with coach Beamer and coach Wright, just building relationships,” Smith told On3. “As I started praying about it, the signs started to show: random people coming up and saying, ‘Hey, I see you in the South Carolina jersey’ or ‘Hey, I could see you wearing garnet and black.’ So the signs started to build and I was like, ‘Alright, that’s why’ because it has my major. I felt comfortable. It was a family environment.”

Scouting Report from On3: Coordinated athlete who has an all-around skill set as a tight end prospect. Measured at around 6-foot-4, 245 pounds prior to his senior season. Has average length relative to his stature. A productive pass-catcher who caught double-digit touchdowns in back-to-back seasons to close out his career. Caught 28 passes for 638 yards and 11 touchdowns as a senior. Lines up all over the formation, splitting out as a receiver, moving in-line and working as a H-back. Flashes high-level ball skills. Tracks and extends for high-difficulty grabs, making impressive adjustments. Naturally coordinated. Strong in jump ball situations. Abuses corners in contested situations when targeted. Shows promise as a blocker. Physical and willing. Even worked some at cornerback. May not blow you away in one facet other than in contested situations, but has few holes to his game. Can continue improving his ability to pick up yards after the catch.

South Carolina football wide receivers coach Mike Furrey extended a scholarship offer to in-state pass-catcher Amiri Acker on Thursday following a strong camp showing at the Jerri and Steve Spurrier Indoor Practice Facility. On Friday, the Crescent High School product announced his final four schools, including his most recent offer on the list.

Posting on social media, Acker revealed a top group of South Carolina, East Carolina, Liberty, and Cincinnati. Notably, he cut the Kentucky Wildcats from the running, a team he was slated to visit officially this weekend. Acker has scheduled an official visit to Liberty for next weekend, as well.

Keep up with all things Gamecocks for just $1 for 7 days—lock in this special offer today!

Acker’s game relies on speed (he ran in the 4.4s in the 40-yard dash on Thursday), though he is a different type of speed-first receiver than smaller wideout signees from last cycle like Lex Cyrus and Jayden Sellers. Instead, at 6-1, Acker brings a little bit of size to the equation, too. Thanks to those few extra inches, he can make plays on the ball in 50-50 situations. He also has some life after the catch, utilizing some underrated agility to make would-be tacklers miss.

The Palmetto State native is relatively new to the On3 industry rankings. Following his recent inclusion, Acker is the nation’s No. 974 overall prospect. He’s also No. 157 among all wide receivers and No. 13 in South Carolina.

David Rosenberg

USA TODAY Sports

Florida has yet to host four-star defensive lineman Xzavier McLeod on an official visit, but that didn’t prevent the Gators from landing in his top six on Wednesday.

McLeod named Florida, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, South Carolina and Texas A&M as his finalists. He’s coming off an official visit to the Tigers and will be in Ann Arbor next week to see the Wolverines. That leaves the Gators to fight with three other programs, all in the SEC, for the three remaining visits.

The last time McLeod was in town was back in April, though. The Gators offered him in March and impressed him on the spring visit, but they’ll need to get him back on campus to avoid being the odd man out of this group. Here’s what he said to 247Sports about Florida after putting the list out:

“Florida is one of the best visits but it was professional,” McLeod said. “I understood where I stand and how I can impact the program where I can play and it’s good to be informed on these things because you’re not trying to feel unwelcomed in a school’s atmosphere or environment so I try to feel as comfortable and be myself as much as I can.”

Billy Napier and Co. are looking to add a deep defensive line class in 2023 and McLeod has the right size and tools for the job. Getting him out of South Carolina might be hard, though. He’s outright said that the home-state team is going to have the advantage, and he’s impressed with what Shane Beamer is building in Columbia.

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle

There’s no date set just yet for a decision, but official visits typically signal that things are getting serious. Narrowing things down to a top six is also a sign that things are getting close, but things can always change in an instant when it comes to recruiting.

McLeod is ranked No. 162 overall on the 247Sports composite and is No. 24 among defensive linemen in the class of 2023. Three crystal balls have been submitted in favor of the Gamecocks with medium confidence.

Related

4-star DL target pushes up commitment date after Penn State visit

Three Gators cut from team by Napier, fourth on thin ice

Gators offer more 2025 recruits, including this rising in-state ATH

Gators host pair of recruits on mid-week official visits

4-star DT leaves official visit to Florida with Gators in top 3

List

Dooley’s Dozen: 12 best SEC football games on the 2022 schedule

List

Dooley’s Dozen: 12 opposing players that broke the Gator Nation’s heart

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Let us know your thoughts and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today!

For the first time since the Brinkley Boys suited up, South Carolina could have twin defenders patrolling the front seven of its defense.

The Gamecocks added commitments from Weddington (N.C.) four-star twin brothers Aiden Harris and Andrew Harris this weekend.

The highly recruited brothers committed during an official visit to the school.

With over 40 offers to their names, the Harris twins chose Carolina over the rest of a Top 10 that also included Auburn, Ohio State, Florida, Texas, Penn State, NC State, Miami, Oregon and Maryland.

“Just always going down and being able to have fun and learn something new every time I go down there,” Aiden told On3 of his most recent unofficial visit. “Just being able to be a player for the day and seeing what they go through with the meeting and lifts and all the stuff they do.”

Keep up with all things Gamecocks for just $1 for 7 days—lock in this special offer today!

The 6-foot-3, 255-pound Aiden is being recruited to play defensive tackle for Carolina and is one of the best in the country at his position.

The On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average of the major recruiting sites, lists Aiden as the No. 55 overall prospect in the country and No. 3 interior defensive lineman.

He was recruited to the Gamecocks by defensive line coach and former Gamecock standout Travian Robertson.

Andrew, though he’s listed as an EDGE by On3 currently, is being recruited to play linebacker at South Carolina.

He is ranked the No. 296 overall prospect in the country in the Industry Ranking and was recruited to the Gamecocks by Clayton White.

The brothers are the Nos. 6 and 7 commitments to the Gamecocks’ 2026 recruiting class.

As a junior, Aiden had 82 tackles including 31 stops for loss, 13.5 sacks and 46 quarterback hurries.

Andrew had 81 tackles with 25 coming behind the line of scrimmage and seven sacks. He had 36 hurries.

The two most well-known sets of twins to play for South Carolina were Jasper and Casper Brinkley and Dustin and Jordin Lindsey. All four played for the Gamecocks during the Steve Spurrier era.

Columbia (S.C.) Hammond School class of 2025 tight end Mike Tyler landed his first scholarship offer last May and has seen his offer list continue to grow in the months since with hometown South Carolina offering in December after a big junior season.

“It was huge,” Tyler said of the offer. “Like, the amount of fans, the amount of support I have at this school and then let alone the community, it was real nice.”

The 6-foot-4, 220-pound Tyler and his family made the short trip across town this past weekend when they were provided an in-depth look at the Gamecocks’ program.

“I loved everything,” Tyler said. “Like when I first got there, Coach (Shane) Beamer came and met me at the door, with his assistants. And that was the first time that ever happened to me. So it’s nice to know I feel special to them and they felt special to me. And building a relationship with Coach (Justin) Stepp, it was nice.”

Tyler’s recruitment has become a bit of a family affair for a couple of college coaches.

Justin Stepp, who recently moved from the receivers room to tight ends coach at South Carolina, is recruiting Tyler for the Gamecocks, while twin brother and Cincinnati tight ends coach Josh Stepp was responsible for the first offer Tyler received back in May.

“He’s an amazing guy,” Tyler said when asked about Justin. “He’s just like his brother. I can’t tell them apart. And it’s nice that he’s coming over from receivers because he can teach me quick-twitch moves and stuff like that. So it’s good.”

[On3 App: Get South Carolina push notifications from GamecockCentral]

Tyler, who collected 33 receptions for 543 yards and seven touchdowns as a junior this past season, said the Gamecocks went over how he’ll be used if he stays in Columbia.

“They like how I’m a hybrid guy,” Tyler said. “I can space the field and not just be a hand-in-the-dirt tight end. I can go catch, block, edge, get match-ups, all of the above.”

Tyler, who also recently visited North Carolina and Virginia Tech, said he’ll take more trips this spring with South Carolina, UCF, Cincinnati, West Virginia, and Duke receiving visits. He adds that Wake Forest is also showing a lot of attention.

“I’m big on relationships,” he says. “Like, I have to have a very good relationship with my position coach. Of course, the head coach, because the position coach, I’m spending all of my hours with him, he’s teaching me everything. And I’ve got to look at, would I go to the school without football and the environment and the community.”

Tyler says his goal is to be committed before his senior year but his recruitment could extend beyond that.