Pup Howard joining South Carolina football for bowl practice
One of South Carolina football’s top 2023 verbal commitments is planning on joining the Gamecocks program for bowl practices, he told 107.5 The Game this morning.
“I’ll be leaving on Monday to go to Columbia,” Howard told Bill Gunter on The Early Game during a segment with Jamie Bradford.
Howard will participate in practices with the team in Columbia prior to returning to Jacksonville for Christmas break.
NCAA rules permit incoming players to participate in on-campus practices – not at the bowl site – so long as high school course work is completed and admission has been granted to the collegiate institution.
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The On3 Consensus four-star prospect looked back on why he decided to commit to Shane Beamer and the South Carolina football program over the summer. Howard chose the Gamecocks over an impressive list of offers from programs such as Clemson, Florida, Georgia, Texas A&M, and numerous others.
“The biggest things is relationships. At South Carolina, I have a relationship with everybody,” Howard said during the interview. “Coach White, Coach Beamer, the strength coach, the dietitian, we have a stronger relationship, Trusting everybody, I was confident in my decision.”
The On3 Consensus – a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies – ranks Howard as the number 178 overall player in the country, number 17 linebacker in the nation and number 41 player from the state of Florida.
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The Sunshine State product is excited about the trajectory of the program under its leader, who guided USC to a pair of top-ten wins at the conclusion of the 2022 season.
Said Howard: “They won two games before Coach Beamer got there and won seven with a bowl game and this year, the Tennessee and the Clemson game on the road, and the Gator Bowl in my home city. That’s how I know it was meant to be. The momentum of the program, I’m real excited about it to come in and keep that momentum going.”
The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder pointed to how Shane Beamer’s program finished the season as evidence of where it is going in the future. Howard’s excited to get started with his fellow 2023 class members.
“Coach Beamer set the standard of what Carolina football should be. We just have to come in and follow the standard.”
