Three outgoing South Carolina Gamecocks rated among On3's top transfer portal players

The transfer portal doesn’t open officially until January 2nd, with the exception of players from schools undergoing head coaching changes. However, players all around the country have already signaled publicly their intention to leave their current teams. For South Carolina, four scholarship players are on that list.

Tight end Michael Smith left the Gamecocks mid-season to preserve a redshirt year and transfer. Since the end of the regular season, offensive lineman Nick Sharpe, defensive lineman Zavion Hardy, and linebacker Jaron Willis all announced their plans to exit Columbia. Walk-on kicker/punter Peyton Argent and walk-on receiver Emazon Littlejohn announced their transfer intentions, as well.

According to On3’s latest transfer portal player industry rankings, three of those players are among the top 300 national transfers available.

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Smith sits highest in those rankings, slotting in at No. 11 overall. He is the highest-rated transfer tight end in the country at this time. During his stint with South Carolina, he registered 12 receptions for 126 yards and one touchdown. He has three years of eligibility remaining.

Next up in the transfer portal industry rankings is Sharpe. Ranked 90th overall, he is also fifth among all interior offensive linemen. In his one year with the Gamecocks, Sharpe played in nine games, starting five. He has one year left to play.

Hardy, who joined the program last offseason out of the junior college ranks, is the third outgoing Gamecock in the On3 transfer portal industry rankings. Hardy ranks No. 113 overall and No. 7 among defensive line transfers. He got into one game while at South Carolina. He has two years of eligibility remaining.

At the time of this writing, Willis, Argent, and Littlejohn are not among the top 277 players in the On3 transfer portal industry rankings.

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