Last recruiting season, USC coach Shane Beamer won a recruiting battle in Washington, DC for Nyck Harbor when many thought he was chasing ghosts. Tuesday Beamer scored another major recruiting win in the nation’s capital with a commitment from DE Dylan Stewart (6-5 238) of Friendship Collegiate. Beamer had to beat the likes of Ohio State, Georgia, Miami and Maryland for Stewart who capped his recruiting travels with a visit to USC this past weekend.
Stewart made several other visits to the USC campus over the last year including an official visit the weekend of June 23rd. With each visit the Gamecocks seemed to get stronger with him.
“I’ve been impressed by how open Beamer is and how the coaching staff treats their players,” Stewart said after his official visit. “I really like the relationships I’ve got with the coaches and my comfortability with the players, and the defensive scheme and what I’d be doing. They would use my athletic ability pretty well.”
Stewart’s coach Mike Hunter added earlier this week that the relationship building between Beamer, his staff and Stewart and his family was key to putting the Gamecocks in position to land him.
“He has a great relationship with the coaches down there,” Hunter said. “He has a great relationship with the players on the team and has definitely built a bond with some of the guys that they are recruiting as well, not only from our area but from around the nation. They’ve done a tremendous job of recruiting him.”
As far as what kind of player the Gamecocks are getting in Stewart, Hunter said he can be every bit the player USC had in Jadeveon Clowney over ten years ago.
“His size and athletic ability are very rare in combination with what he has,” Hunter said. “You don’t see many guys at his size with that athletic ability. That makes him a rare athlete. I never saw Clowney up close and personal. Just watched him on TV. Dylan is definitely a kid that can be in that same mold of a Jadaveon Clowney.”
Stewart gives the Gamecocks 15 commitments for their 2024 class and a jump start to what could be a huge week for them. Two targets are announcing Friday in 2024 WR Jonathan Paylor and 2026 QB Landon Duckworth.
USC 2024 commitments:
BRAYDON LEE CB 6-1 215 SPRINGDALE, MD
DYLAN STEWART DE 6-5 238 WASHINGTON, DC
WILLIAM GREGORY LB 6-4 220 MARIETTA, GA
FRED JOHNSON LB 6-3 225 NORFOLK, VA
DAVID BUCEY LB 6-2 200 SAVANNAH
BLAKE FRANKS OG 6-5 310 GREENVILLE
KAM PRINGLE OT 6-7 315 WOODLAND
JOSIAH THOMPSON OT 6-7 290 DILLON
MASON LOVE P 6-0 175 PARKVILLE, MO
DANTE RENO QB 6-1 215 FISKDALE, MA
MATTHEW FULLER RB 6-0 210 JESUP, GA
KELVIN HUNTER SAF 6-1 185 WEST FLORENCE
MICHAEL SMITH TE 6-4 225 SAVANNAH
MAZEO BENNETT WR 6-0 165 GREENVILLE
ZY’MARION LANG WR 6-2 170 SARASOTA, FL
