South Carolina football target sets commitment date following official visit

South Carolina hosted an impressive group of official visitors last weekend and has another loaded list on campus this weekend. One of the players in Columbia for the first official visit weekend was Alabama defensive back KJ Johnson. The 3-star defensive back has become a major target for the Gamecocks. Last weekend was another good trip to USC, following up on a strong unofficial visit this spring.

Since the weekend ended, the Woodlawn High School product has set his college decision day. Johnson has told GamecockCentral that Monday will be his commitment day. The timing of the decision seemingly bodes well for South Carolina.

The recruiting industry is split on Johnson’s positional future (corner vs. safety), but if he were to pick the Gamecocks, he could wind up at corner, safety, or nickel. At the time of this writing, defensive backs coach/defensive passing game coordinator Torrian Gray has just one player committed to join his unit next season. 4-star safety J’Zavien Currence is that player.

Stay on top of all things Gamecocks for just $1 for 7 days—lock in this special offer today!

As a player, Johnson is a long, versatile athlete. In other words, he is the exact archetype of player Gray typically recruits. Listed at 6-2, Johnson has logged 100-meter track times in the 10.7s, won an Alabama state championship as part of Woodlawn’s 4×400 relay team, and claims to have touched 22 miles per hour on the catapult system.

This weekend, Johnson is on an official visit to West Virginia. He had previously scheduled a trip to Mississippi State next weekend and a later one to Ole Miss, but with a decision coming on Monday, those visits seem unlikely unless he makes a surprise pick of a team from the Magnolia State.

Discuss South Carolina football on The Insiders Forum!