Kyle Kennard speaks on bond with Sterling Lucas at South Carolina
In January, South Carolina made a big push to extend the contract of defensive ends coach Sterling Lucas. The extension came in large part because of the success Lucas has had in recruiting.
Lucas made a big splash helping sign five-star Dylan Stewart. He was also able to find success in the transfer portal.
Kyle Kennard, the Georgia Tech transfer, spoke very highly of Lucas in the recruiting process.
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“My position coach, Coach Lucas, he was a big part of the reason I decided to come here,” Kennard said. “The moment I stepped foot here, the moment we got on the phone, and even when he came to see me I just knew he was a real dude all around.”
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Lucas spent six seasons coaching at the NFL level. Before joining the staff at South Carolina, he was a defensive assistant for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Most notably, Lucas spent five seasons with the Baltimore Ravens.
“I knew what he was saying, what he was about, and what he was offering me was actually going to be there,” Kennard said. “I feel like the things he was offering to teach me is more modern and that’s something I needed in my game so I feel that all around he was a good fit for me.”
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The Gamecocks have been loading up on NFL experience in their coaching staff. This continues to be a theme around college football to balance out a recruiting pitch with NIL.
“Coach Lucas loves bringing up his NFL tenure and what guys he’s worked with and that’s a good pitch because like obviously you want to get to their level,” Kennard said. “He always brings up guys like Matthew Judon, who is probably his number one guy so he’s really heavy in that pitch.”
