Jhaustin Thomas is an athletic defensive end in the class of 2012 out of Decatur, GA that could be the next South Carolina Gamecocks football recruit.

According to sources around the Al Gore invented internet, Thomas has reached his decision and could make it public this weekend at the USC-Auburn game. Those are the two schools he is suppose to decide between.  He is making the visit to Columbia, SC.  So reading tea leaves, he is likely to choose USC.

He would be a great pick-up for USC and the defense as he is the right type of defensive line product for USC as he has tremendous athleticism.  He is very long and rangy and he can move. He does a nice job of containing his side, he plays under control, and he chases the ball well. His only down side is he just needs to get stronger.

He is a three star recruit according to Rivals and Scout.  He is up there for 247 also.  He is a heck of basketball player and hopefully Horn will consider him even if it is a "project."  I mean, he is 6'7" 240 lbs. 

Here is a video of him at DE/DT/TE -

Don't be surprised if he says he wants to be a Gamecock by Sunday.  

Are the South Carolina Gamecocks chances for landing Brice Johnson of Edisto fading away?  Let's hope not as the USC Gamecocks basketball team could surely use his talents around the rim.

Johnson made his official visit to North Carolina last weekend. He has also took a official visit to NC State not too long ago.  He will be heading to the Florida Gators on October 1st and plans to make a decision on his college choice shortly after the Gators visit.

Speaking of the Gators, Coach Billy Donovan and his assistants John Pelphrey and Norm Roberts visited Johnson last week.  USC and Clemson also remain involved with Johnson and are hoping for a visit but it appears that they are lagging behind in the recruiting of Johnson.

Let's hope Coach Darrin Horn begins to make a big push to show this kid some love.  USC assistant coach Mike Boynton visited with Johnson yesterday morning but still USC has not been able to land a official visit.

Brice Johnson is a 6'9 forward that has so much potential, here are some highlights from the 2011 LeBron James Skills Academy.

Chris Brown has shunned South Carolina.  No not the singer Chris Brown but the Chris Brown that plays high school football in South Carolina for Hanahan.

Brown committed to Notre Dame this past Sunday. This is disappointing for us South Carolina fans as Brown had been favoring USC before making the trip to South Bend.  The three star wide out had considered Virginia Tech, LSU, Arkansas, North Carolina and Cincinnati.

He is a top 20 recruit in the State of South Carolina and a rated in the Top 100 for WR's.  He runs a 4.4 in the 40.

Brown cited academics, the campus feel and connection to the coaches as the reasons for his decision. He plans to major in either sports medicine or kinesiology.  He also plans to be on the track team as he is a very good triple jumper.

Hated to see him go for the Irish over South Carolina as the Gamecocks could use his talents.  Oh well.

South Carolina football team picked up a big commitment as linebacker Kaiwan Lewis (6’2” 228lbs.) out of Hammonton, New Jersey chose USC.  He picked the Gamecocks over offers from Florida, Florida State, Tennessee, and several other programs.

The South Carolina Gamecocks football team has picked up another commitment as T.J. Gurley has given his pledge to sign with USC and be part of their Class of 2012.

Gurley, 5’10” 179 pounds, picked the Gamecocks over Tennessee and Mississippi State. Gurley also had offers from Arkansas, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Louisville and Southern Miss.

Gurley is from Cairo, Georgia and had visited USC earlier this summer.  Since that visit he has stayed in regular contact with Gamecock coaches John Butler and Jeep Hunter.  When asked why he signed, he had this to say - “I like the program and the education. I like the coaches and they play my style of play. I feel like it’s a good program. It was the best fit for me.”

According to 247 sports, Gurley is a three-star prospect.  Scout.com ranks Gurley as the No. 59 CB in the country and also has him as a three-star recruit.   Coaches at USC have indicated to Gurley that he will play as an inside-the-box safety and nickelback at South Carolina.

Gurley is the sixth prospect from the Peach State to verbally commit to South Carolina, is the third for the defensive backfield for this recruiting cycle and is South Carolina's 16th commitment of the 2012 class.

Here is the newest Gamecock in action -

Here are some notes on South Carolina Gamecocks recruiting within the sports of basketball, football and baseball:

South Carolina's head basketball coach, Darrin Horn, has offered Kedar Edwards a chance to be a Gamecock.

Edwards, a New York City native, is currently attending school in Orlando, FL. According to the New York Post, the Gamecocks watched Edwards at a camp in Philadelphia and shortly issued the offer.  Notice that the Post refers to Edwards as "lighting in a bottle." 

Edwards currently has offers from South Carolina and Manhattan but is hearing interest from Rutgers and a number of others.

Last season, Edwards was named to the Independent All State first team.  He has a high motor, knack for scoring and seems to have huge upside due to his willingness to get better.

This 6'4" shooting guard could be exactly the kind of player the Gamecocks need.  A guy willing to work to score and do what it takes to win.  Love that kind of player.  Let's hope he wants to be a Gamecock as the program could use a player like this.

The South Carolina Football team landed an excellent offensive line player in Cody Waldrop.  This four star rated recruit gave his verbal today to USC as his desire is to join the defending SEC East champions. 

Waldrop (6-foot-4, 315 pounds), a member of the Florida Class 4A all-state team, had settled on the Gamecocks after visiting the USC campus earlier this week with his family. Reportedly, he had narrowed his choices between the Gamecocks and Georgia.  This offensive guard had over 20 offers from many schools desiring his services.

Waldrop, out of Seffner, FL, is the nation's No. 10 guard prospect according to Rivals.com, and is ranked as the State of Florida's No. 40 overall player by FlaVarsity.com.  According to 247sports, he is a three-star prospect with an overall grade of 85.

Here is video of the newest Gamecock in action for Armwood High:

Waldrop is the 15th commit for USC and their Class of 2012.  He is the fourth OL pledge of the class as he joins Mason Zandi, Brock Stadnik and Clayton Stadnik.

Welcome Cody to Gamecock Nation.

The South Carolina Gamecocks football team picked up yet another commitment for the Class of 2012 today as Allentown Central Catholic's,  Brendan Nosovitch commits to the Gamecocks.  

As we wrote back in April when Nosovitch visited that "USC could use a quarterback like him."  Well, it is offical now after months of recruiting Nosovitch. 

This is a dual threat style quarterback with good speed and talent in the pocket.  He picked the Gamecocks over Clemson, Maryland, Virginia, and Georgia Tech.  Nosovitch passed for 3,112 yards and 43 touchdowns last season, while also rushing for 1,647 yards and another 25 touchdowns as a junior.

He has lots of upside and will likely redshirt due to need to develop arm strength and learn to read SEC defenses.  He is commitment No. 14 for USC for the 2012 cycle and will likely be the only true QB USC takes this cycle.

Here is video of the newest Gamecock in action -

The University of South Carolina football team has quite a few players from the Class of 2011 on campus, enrolled and working out.  With that being said, there is a few academic casualties from the USC class.  Three players did not qualify and they are: defensive back Ronnie Martin, offensive lineman Quincy McKinney and tight end Jerrell Adams.

Here is a list of USC signees that were part of the 2011 class that are on campus: