South Carolina landed a commitment from East Mississippi Community College defensive lineman Elijah Davis. He’s rated the No. 4 JUCO player in the 2023 class.
247Sports
South Carolina has hauled in a massive new member of its 2023 recruiting class.
East Mississippi Community College defensive lineman Elijah Davis announced Tuesday night that he’s committed to USC.
Davis is rated a four-star recruit, the No. 4 junior college player and the No. 1 JUCO defensive lineman in the 2023 class, per the 247Sports Composite that factors in all networks.
The former Wagener-Salley High standout — who is 6-foot-4 and weighs 280 pounds — spent the past two years in Scooba, Mississippi, where he evolved into one of the more dominant defensive linemen at the junior college level. He finished the 2022 season with 35 tackles, three sacks and 3.5 tackles for a loss as the Lions went 8-3.
Davis reported offers from Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas and Auburn, among others.
Davis is the latest get for a South Carolina defensive line class that is already among the better groups in the country. He joins a list that includes four-star prospects Desmond Umeozulu (No. 159 overall), Xzavier McLeod (No. 186 overall), Zavion Hardy (No. 227 overall) and Monteque Rhames (No. 367 overall).
The Gamecocks are set to lose Zacch Pickens, who’s already announced he’s skipping the bowl game to prepare for the NFL Draft. Defensive end Gilber Edmond also entered the transfer portal.
South Carolina football 2023 commits
This story was originally published December 20, 2022 8:00 PM.
Ben Portnoy is The State’s South Carolina Gamecocks football beat writer. He’s a five-time Associated Press Sports Editors award honoree and has earned recognition from the Mississippi Press Association and the National Sports Media Association. Portnoy previously covered Mississippi State for the Columbus Commercial Dispatch and Indiana football for the Journal Gazette in Ft. Wayne, Indiana.