Lucy Beckham OT Ty Johnson has been one of the major climbers in the recruiting market in South Carolina over the last six months. He’s gone from off the radar to being in the bullseye for several Power Four programs. Georgia and South Carolina, in particular, have made a big move with Johnson.
Johnson’s dad played on the offensive line for the Bulldogs in the mid 1990s, so the familiarity and comfort level with the Georgia program has been there a long time. Johnson will not take his recruiting with the Bulldogs to the next level after setting an official visit for June 12th, something that a few months ago appeared out of reach for him.
“It’s awesome. It’s one of those things that’s pretty crazy,” Johnson said. “It really starts to set in now that I’ve set the official. It’s pretty nuts. It’s real.”
And now that he’s set an official visit with Georgia, he’s looking to do the same with the Gamecocks.
“I’m definitely thinking of setting up an official to South Carolina more than likely,” Johnson said. “We’ve come a long way. I’ve been able to get on the phone a good bit, been able to talk to the whole staff a lot. Been able to send them a good bit of drills, which they’ve liked. That’s been really good for us. That’s been big in helping to build our relationship.”
Lonnie Teasley originally recruited Johnson for the Gamecocks. When he was fired mid-season, interim OL coach Shawn Elliott kept it going. And now, new line coach Randy Clements is making a big push.
“They actually texted me today that I’m the number one tackle that they want to sign right now,” Johnson said. “I’m on top of their board. It’s definitely a big interest there. They really want me. I think they’ve got a really good thing going with the new staff. I’m kind of excited to see where it goes next season.”
This looks like it could be an old-fashioned recruiting battle between the Gamecocks and Dogs. However, Johnson says there’s much more going on with his recruiting than his involvement with those two SEC rivals.
“That’s a little too simple,” Johnson said. “I think in the next few weeks, there could be some schools that can come in that could definitely mix things up. Definitely still open to a lot of spring visits, those are just the two that I felt like I needed to set so far.”
One of those is Ohio State. The Buckeyes have been in touch recently, and their interest is strong, according to Johnson. He also just picked up an offer from West Virginia to go along with earlier ones from Missouri, Nebraska, Duke, Wake Forest, Oklahoma State, North Carolina, Stanford, Virginia Tech, and, of course, USC and Georgia.
Johnson has set an unofficial visit with South Carolina for March 6th and one with Georgia for March 21st.