The transfer portal can be a blessing one moment and a curse the next. Just 48 hours ago, South Carolina secured Andrew Jones, the Southwestern Atlantic Conference Co-Defensive Player of the Year from Grambling. Now, he has already pledged to another program.
Jones, one of the top linebackers in the portal, was highly sought after by schools looking to bolster their defenses. Given the hits South Carolina’s defense has taken from graduations and the NFL draft, landing Jones was a significant boost for the Gamecocks, especially with their limited depth at linebacker.
Despite his commitment to South Carolina, Jones had an official visit lined up with SEC rival Ole Miss. While Gamecocks fans understood a commitment wasn’t a guarantee to play in Columbia next season, they likely expected Jones to at least arrive on campus before committing elsewhere.
Jones had just one year of eligibility remaining, so his addition wasn’t a long-term solution. Still, it stings to see him transfer to a rival school—especially one that’s on South Carolina’s 2025 schedule.
Head coach Shane Beamer will now need to revisit the transfer portal to address the linebacker room, which is losing key players like Demtrius Knight Jr., Debo Williams, and Bam Martin-Scott to graduation, with some aiming for the NFL Draft.
The Gamecocks have been impacted by both the transfer portal and NFL Draft declarations on offense and defense. However, they’ll need to prioritize bolstering the defensive side in the remaining two weeks of the current portal window.
Fortunately, this isn’t the final chance to make roster moves before next season. The spring transfer window opens from April 16 to April 28, 2025, providing another opportunity to recruit during spring practices.
