Draft notes for South Carolina football players.
Tony Pauline, chief analyst at the Pro Football Network, released his rankings for the next NFL draft and, if his predictions are correct, the South Carolina football team will lose several players to the professional categories in 2021, despite finishing the season with just two wins. On the list are a handful of defenders, one of the most productive recipients in the program’s history, and a few maulers on the offensive line.
Let’s look at the profile of each player, as Pauline projects where each prospect will arrive at the selection ceremony.
At the top of the list is junior defender Jaycee Horn, who reaches 28th position in the ranking. He is the only Gamecock to receive a grade in the first round draft and is considered the fourth best cornerback in the draft.
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Jaycee horn
CB University of South Carolina
Horn, a three-year holder for Gamecocks, recorded his first two interceptions in 2020 and received the National Player of the Week honors after a blocking performance against Auburn in October.
Horn chose not to participate in the team’s last three games after the dismissal of coach Will Muschamp, but so far had the lowest percentage of completion allowed between corners of the SEC.
Son of the great NFL player Joe Horn, Jaycee seems to follow in his father’s footsteps and could become the second South Carolina defender selected in the first round in a few years (J. Kinlaw).
The next is the other defender and team leader Ernest Jones, who has kept pace with the defensive unit in the tackles for the past two seasons. Last year, Jones ended with 97 takedowns, followed by a season of 86 tackles in 2020.
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Ernest Jones
ILB University of South Carolina
The junior linebacker is considered by Pro Football Network to be one of the 100 best candidates, reaching 96th place in the ranking. He was classified as the eighth best player within the linebacker in the draft and received a grade in the third round of the draft.
Jones had two games of 18 tackles or more last season and has been the vocal leader in the Carolina locker room since his first year. He concludes his career with 199 tackles, three forced fumbles, two interceptions and a recovery.
After Jones comes the first player on the offensive side of the ball, striker Dylan Wonnum. Wonnum, a junior, is the brother of DJ Wonnum, a former Gamecock and selection for the fourth round of the Minnesota Vikings in 2019.
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Dylan Wonnum
OL University of South Carolina
Wonnum has been a starter along the Carolina front since his debut season, when he won freshman honors at All-America. He came to university as a highly regarded four-star recruit, and was based on that in the South Carolina attack.
Wonnum has appeared in more than 20 games over the course of his three-year career and, although he has not yet made his decision in the NFL Draft, he may be heading into the professional rankings a season earlier. It is considered the 15th best offensive tackle in the draft.