STRecruiting: 2028 DT Christian McGowan has his commitment date, and it’s full steam ahead with South Carolina for him

2028 DT Christian McGowan of Jacksonville, FL, was back in Columbia on Saturday with his dad to watch USC tangle with Texas A&M. McGowan told SportsTalkSC last week he already had his mind made up to commit to the Gamecocks at some point in December; he just didn’t know when. Coming out of the visit, those intentions have not changed, and he has decided on his date.

The pledge will come on December 7th, which is not just Pearl Harbor Day; it is also McGowan’s birthday.

“I think committing is a big accomplishment because not everybody is able to go to a school like South Carolina,” McGowan said Monday night. “I wanted to put it on some day that’s special, not just a random day. I don’t want to commit on a day that has no meaning. I want to commit on a day that means something to me. It’s another milestone in life, just like committing is. It’s going to be South Carolina; there’s no doubt at all. I’m going to take other OVs; my dad wants me to go through the whole process, but right now it’s 100%, South Carolina.  I told them I was going to verbally commit to them on the 7th. There’s no doubt It’s going to be them.”

McGowan said this trip to Columbia was no different than earlier ones. He talked wth head coach Shane Beamer and defensive tackles coach Travian Robertson, and it was just like talking to family.

“It just felt like they all miss me coming down,” McGowan said. “The D-line played really good. Just watching the coaches coach, and then how they treat me and everything, that’s a big part, how they treat me down there. There’s always going to be good recruits there, so I’m not going to be the only one, but they were still treating me like how they treat me regardless, even if there were recruits that are five stars that are there. It feels like family every time I go down there. Even when I call them, it just feels like I’m talking to family. I see myself there right now.”

McGowan said his conversation with Robertson didn’t consist of a lot of football and recruiting stuff, but rather how his season has been going, and how he has been growing.

“He was talking about how much bigger I’ve gotten and how I’m going the correct route,” McGowan said. “When I first saw Coach T-Rob, I was 250 pounds, and I’m 275 now. And I’ve grown taller; I’m like six, four and a half, 275.”

McGowan will be back on the road this Saturday with a visit to NC State. He has also been to games at Georgia, Syracuse, USF, and FAU.