South Carolina football adds a specialist in running passes.
Shane Beamer and the South Carolina football program had a huge boost on the defensive side of the ball when they learned that running pass specialist Jordan Strachan will make the Gamecocks list in the 2021 season.
Strachan, an external Georgia linebacker, drew the NCAA’s lead in sacks last year, registering 10.5 quarterback drops in 10 action games. Strachan also added 78 tackles, 14 loss tackles and three forced fumbles. He received recognition from the third team throughout the conference for his stellar season.
The Peach State native was a two-star recruit who dropped out of high school and had no scholarship offers. He joined the Panthers program as an assistant in 2018. Strachan will now have three remaining seasons of eligibility in Columbia.
With the addition, South Carolina’s defense gets an immediate shake-up as last year’s unit recorded 14 layoffs last year. Gamecocks have learned that they will also get JJ Enagbare back next season, after he accumulated six bags in 2020, and the pair is expected to provide a solid foundation for the new technical team.
Strachan adds quality depth to a linebacker room that is losing its best defender in the past two years and is in desperate need of production. Outside of Ernest Jones, no linebacker on the list recorded more than 50 tackles.
Strachan should fit perfectly into the Gamecocks’ new defensive scheme. Coordinator Clayton White installs a 4-2-5 defense that requires fast, athletic linebackers who can apply consistent pressure to opposing quarterbacks through blitz packs. Strachan’s previous success in this department is the reason he was brought to Columbia, and he should be included in the linebacker rotation immediately.
With the addition, Gamecocks won the four-transfer commitment, with Strachan joining Ahmarean Brown (Georgia Tech), David Spaulding (Georgia Southern) and Darryl Williams (Delaware).