Jacksonville State was the latest of the FCS-to-FBS success stories last season, putting together an outstanding 9-4 campaign in 2023. The Gamecocks fared OK in the transfer portal too and actually have the FBS depth to run their hyperspeed offense effectively in 2024.
Who are Jacksonville State’s best returners in 2024?
Jacksonville State Gamecocks Top 10 Returners in 2024
Analyzing the returning players at every school is a difficult task in the transfer portal era. As such, we’ve included transfer-portal athletes that were included on each team’s roster page to open fall camp in addition to the rostered players from last year.
10) Samario “Flip” Rudolph, WR
A transfer from UAB, Samario “Flip” Rudolph will get plenty of run in the slot this fall, where Jacksonville State likes to funnel a lot of its targets. Rudolph will be the primary beneficiary of that passing offense, as he’ll likely improve on his 33 targets from a season ago, despite moving to a less pass-happy offense.
9) Tyler Huff, QB
With all respect to the great Steve Spurrier, Rich Rodriguez is the only coach who has successfully implemented a consistent two-quarterback system. Logan Smothers puts his body on the line a lot, so Tyler Huff, a Furman transfer, will play extensively this year. He’s electric as a runner, and Furman has had quarterbacks transfer up with great success in the past.
8) Derek Carter, CB
Derek Carter is one of the few pieces back in a heavily portaled secondary, and he was solid for the Gamecocks last year, leading the team with eight pass breakups and faring well in both coverage and run support. There’s more pressure with less around him, but he should be up to the task.
7) Laletia Hale, LB
The linebacker room is incredibly thin this year, so Laletia Hale is so much more important to the defense’s prospects this year. Hale finished last year with 31 solo tackles, second-best among the linebackers, and he’ll man the middle in 2024.
6) Fred Perry, S
Fred Perry was quietly one of the better safeties in the Conference USA last year, as he led the team in tackles with 75 last season. The Gamecocks portaled a lot in the secondary, but Perry’s consistency should really give the defense a boost. Perry also forced three fumbles last year.
5) Ron Wiggins, RB
Ron Wiggins may have been my favorite running back to watch last season as he played as a change-of-pace back. He had 11 runs of 10 or more yards on just 65 carries. Wiggins missed several games in the middle of the season with an injury and wasn’t quite right when he came back, but there was plenty to build on in 2023.
READ MORE: Conference USA Strength of Schedule
4) Jaylen “J-Rock” Swain, Edge
With Chris Hardie now gone, Jaylen “J-Rock” Swain is now the go-to edge rusher. As far as secondary pass rushers for Group of Five teams go, you could certainly do worse than Swain, who had 30 pressures in just 237 pass rush snaps. He was excellent against the run as well, with 26 run stops in 2023.
3) Logan Smothers, QB
Last year, he was the “change-of-pace” quarterback behind Zion Webb. Now he’s the primary signal-caller, though he’ll likely be one of the few entrenched starting quarterbacks in college football to be “spelled” with a backup. He’s an electric runner but will be relied on more heavily as a passer in 2024.
2) Sean Brown, TE
The primary reason Jacksonville State should be good again is that the coaching staff was able to retain the last two guys on this list. I’ve been higher on Sean Brown than most for a while, and I think he’s a legitimate NFL Draft prospect. He has soft hands and has only dropped two passes in his career.
1) Clay Webb, OG
Clay Webb was named College Football Network’s Preseason Offensive Lineman of the Year and is one of the top interior linemen in the country. The fact that Jacksonville State was able to retain him when the Power Four sharks were circling is extremely impressive, and he’s going to lead the Gamecocks to one of the best running games in the country.
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