South Carolina football has one of the best pass brokers in the country.
The South Carolina football team is gearing up to start spring training, while Shane Beamer and the new team will try to identify which players will make a difference next season. Although Gamecocks are shorthanded and unproven in a number of position groups, there is an area where the list seems ready to make a significant impact.
The defensive line room has several game makers coming back in 2021, including Aaron Sterling, Jordan Burch, Jabari Ellis, Tonka Hemingway, Zacch Pickens and Rick Sandidge. Gamecocks also added the country’s sack leader a season ago, in Jordan Strachan, who moved from Georgia in the off-season.
The best of the group, however, may be the senior Kingsley “JJ” Enagbare, who finished last year with the second highest number of sacks in the SEC, despite having lost a few games due to an injury. He also led the league in forced fumbles with three.
The dexterity of Enagbare’s fast pass was on full display in 2020, and Pro Football Focus has the analysis to prove it.
Enagbare was the leader in third-pass passes in the country last season, according to the PFF, with a score of 93.6 in situations of third descent.
The Georgia native registered six sacks, seven loss tackles and a pair of defenders hurried on their way to an All-SEC campaign. Enagbare will try to duplicate those results in 2021, leading a front four that should be the best defense unit.
Altogether, the defensive line will bring back a total of 35 sacks and 53.5 tackles for defeat. Hopefully, this talented passing race will help a secondary who will be entering new players in various positions along the defensive field.
It will be interesting to see how Enagbare is used in the defensive scheme of the new coordinator Clayton White. It will likely be used similarly to last season, where the edge rusher can line up in several different areas over the first four, both standing and with the hand on the ground.
If Enagbare has the same impact in 2021, he will start to see his name rising on the recruitment boards and as he prepares for a move at the professional level.