South Carolina football target Corey Rucker blown away to meet Dawn Staley
By all indications, South Carolina football target Corey Rucker‘s official visit to the school couldn’t have gone much better.
But as his Monday-Wednesday trip to Columbia was winding down on Tuesday night, Rucker expressed one final thought on what would put the visit completely over the top: the chance to meet South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley.
Earlier in the day, Rucker had posted some photos from his visit to his Twitter, as recruits so often do these days, with the caption “this is @dawnstaley country.”
Little did he know, his wish would soon become a reality.
“Oh my God, I wish somebody was recording my reaction,” Rucker told Gamecock Central. “(Tuesday) night, I was sitting in the hotel, I was on Instagram Live and somebody asked me, ‘How’s your visit going?’ and I was like, ‘Man, it’s good or whatever but the only thing that would make it crazy was if I actually met Dawn Staley’ because I made the Twitter post and I was like ‘This is Dawn Staley country’ or whatnot. While I’m on Live I got a phone call and I declined it but then I got a message and it was Jessica (Jackson) texting me and she was like answer the phone. She was like I need you to get up 30 minutes early tomorrow.”
The reason for the early wakeup was well worth it.
“She was like we’re going to take you to Dawn Staley’s house to meet her,” Rucker said. “And I lost it.”
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Jackson, the Gamecocks’ Director of On-Campus Recruiting, was hailed as “Thee Head Coach of official visits” by Rucker on Twitter for her troubles.
There was some luck involved too. Some luck that Staley was still in town Wednesday morning as her South Carolina women’s basketball team was scheduled to leave Columbia later that day to head to Greensboro, N.C. for Friday’s Sweet 16 matchup with North Carolina.
Staley, who appears to have a strong relationship with Shane Beamer and the football program and recently signed a ball for wide receivers coach Justin Stepp’s father’s birthday, met with Rucker at her home and shared some words prior to Rucker hopping on a plane back home.
“I was grinning the whole time,” Rucker said. “Her message was basically what she’s seen Coach Beamer do in the amount of time he’s been here, turning the program around, and that the entire city is just full of genuine people that actually care about the student-athletes for who they are. She pretty much had kind of the same message that Spencer (Rattler) had, that if you’re looking for genuine people then this is definitely the spot.”
A transfer portal wide receiver from Arkansas State, Rucker has offers from South Carolina, Auburn, Ole Miss, Utah State, Virginia Tech, Washington, Washington State, Vanderbilt, South Alabama, Southern Miss, Appalachian State, and Texas State.
He has visited South Carolina officially, Auburn unofficially, and will visit Utah State officially starting today. He hopes to make a decision soon.
