Justin Okoronkwo reminds Clayton White of one former South Carolina linebacker

Against Virginia Tech in the season opener, South Carolina linebacker Justin Okoronkwo made his presence felt. The Alabama transfer made four total tackles, including one for a loss, in a 24-11 win.

Defensive coordinator Clayton White had praise for the sophomore in his press conference on Wednesday.

“He’s super smart. He’s a very intelligent young man,” White said. “So I think that’s an intangible that people don’t realize. But he’s very smart, so he understands a lot of different things. I do think he plays hard.”

Okoronkwo’s tackle for loss came at a crucial point in the second quarter. With Virginia Tech entering the red zone, the Hokies attempted a jet sweep with Cameron Seldon. But Okoronkwo ran under and through his blocker to tackle Seldon high and bring him down for a loss. After the negative play, Virginia Tech’s offense stalled, and the Hokies settled for a field goal.

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“That’s when we get taught to just put the ball down,” Okoronkwo said of the tackle. “We always got to be ready to play the next play and flush whatever happened before and focus on the next play.”

South Carolina totaled four tackles for loss against Virginia Tech, and the Hokies did not manage a touchdown. That marked the first time Virginia Tech was held without a touchdown since Nov. 4, 2023, against Louisville. On the individual level, Okoronkwo caught White’s eye, akin to a notable former South Carolina linebacker.

“He does have some trigger about him where he can kind of go downhill old school like Debo (Williams). He kind of reminds me of Debo, you know, he plays and does some things a bit differently than Debo, but I do think that he does bring that little aspect to our defense. He’s also tough and hard-nosed,” White said. “He plays on special teams, and he can battle through some things. But I do think that’s highly respected throughout our football program.”

Williams placed fourth on the Gamecock defense last season with 63 total tackles. In four years with the Gamecocks after transferring from Delaware, Williams totaled 225 tackles for South Carolina. Williams’ 113 tackles in the 2023 season are the most in a single season for South Carolina since 2002. Jonathan Martin recorded 122 tackles in what was Lou Holtz’s fourth season.

Speaking of special teams, Williams was the last Gamecocks player to block two punts in a game. That came against Eastern Illinois in the 2021 season. Okoronkwo made an impact on defense against the Hokies, but there’s room for him to wreak havoc on special teams, too. Okoronkwo will continue to see the field, and he’s been waiting for the opportunity.

“That’s what I was waiting for, that’s what we’ve been training for since January, since I got here. And it’s just great to finally be out there,” Okoronkwo said.

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