COLUMBIA, S.C. — The first day of preseason practice is in the books for South Carolina and among the newcomers on the field for the Gamecocks was Hammond product Jordan Burch.
The 6-6, 275-pound Burch was a 5-star prospect coming out of high school. Burch played running back and receiver for Hammond while also manning one of the defensive end positions for a program which has won the last three SCISA 3A state championships.
A member of the Hammond basketball team, Burch will start at the BUCK position which is a hybrid linebacker/defensive end position. He will also play the SAM linebacker as the coaches hope to take advantage of his athleticism.
"He’s extremely bright. He catches on extremely well. He’s very competitive in the weight room, very competitive in the meeting room, very competitive when we’re in the walk-through situations,” South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp said.
“(Outside linebackers coach) Mike Peterson’s been very pleased with how he retains information day-to-day.”
Burch was rated as one of the top defensive ends in the country coming out of high school. He was the highest rated signee at South Carolina since Jadeveon Clowney was the number one overall player in the country back in 2011.
The Gamecocks will practice 25 times in 40 days with the season opener scheduled for September 26 against Tennessee at Williams-Brice Stadium.