Five years since originally committing to South Carolina, George Wilson will finally suit up for Gamecocks

When George Wilson decommitted from South Carolina and quickly flipped to Florida State in 2020, he probably thought the chances of him ever playing for the Gamecocks were near zero.

But over five years since he originally committed to South Carolina as a highly recruited high school prospect, the talented pass-rusher will finally suit up in the Garnet and Black later this month.

“Nah, I never thought that (I’d play for Carolina),” Wilson said with a smile last week. “It’s really a circle to come back to. This is great.”

Many South Carolina fans will remember when the Green Run High School graduate from Virginia Beach, Va., surprisingly committed to the Gamecocks during the summer of 2020, over finalists North Carolina, Arizona State, and Penn State.

“It was very hard for me,” Wilson said Thursday, looking back on the recruiting process. “I would say, being young, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. Just picking different schools, I think I had a top four, and just picking out of those schools, it was very hard for me. I made my decision to come here because I felt like it was the best opportunity for me. During that time, it was COVID, but the culture felt like home for me, so I made that decision.”

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But Wilson ultimately backed off that pledge when Will Muschamp was fired later that year and signed with Florida State.

“That’s why I decommitted,” Wilson said. “He got fired and I kinda panicked. I didn’t even let Coach Beamer get in. I kind of panicked and went to the next school. Me being young, I just panicked and tried to secure a chance in college.”

After starting his college career at Florida State, the 6-foot-4, 230-pounder spent the last two seasons at Campbell, where he collected a combined nine sacks in those two years.

In 2023, Wilson’s first year with the Fighting Camels, Wilson played in all 11 games, making four starts with 21 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and a team-high four sacks.

This past season, he played in 12 games with seven starts, collecting 18 tackles, including 6.0 TFLs and five sacks.

With one year of eligibility left, Wilson entered the transfer portal hoping for an opportunity to return to the Power 4 level.

Ironically, it was the school that he was originally committed to that called.

“I got in the portal and coach Sterl Luc called me and I thought it was a no-brainer,” Wilson said. “I wanted to be at South Carolina out of high school, and I thought it was a no-brainer, so I just ended the deal there.”

The former four-star high school prospect inked with the Gamecocks out of the portal in April. He made his debut on the practice fields Friday after going through summer workouts with the team.

Wilson, who is considered a pass-rush specialist, says his goal is to do everything he can to help the team win.

“I’m just excited to be here and to be a Gamecock,” Wilson said. “I wanted to be a Gamecock for many years and I’m just excited to get on the field with these boys and have fun.”

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