South Carolina No Longer in the Mix for Jared Curtis, What it Means for Gamecocks

What South Carolina no longer being in the mix for Jared Curtis means for the Gamecocks.

Nashville Christian's Jared Curtis (2) smiles after scoring a touchdown against Columbia Academy during the fourth quarter of the Division II-A championship game at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tenn., Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024. / Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

What South Carolina no longer being in the mix for Jared Curtis means for the Gamecocks.

Not long ago, five-star quarterback Jared Curtis announced his final two schools were Georgia and Oregon, removing the Gamecocks from the running to land the blue chip prospect. While the Gamecocks are still have the chance to produce an impressive class, they now know that landing another high-profile quarterback is essential. 

While Coach Beamer and his staff were all in on bringing Curtis to Columbia, they did not stop recruiting other quarterbacks. Two of the main targets at the position in the class of 2026 are Landon Duckworth from Alabama and Brady Smigiel from Calfornia. 

Duckworth stands at 6-foot-3 and is just shy of 200 pounds. At Jackson High School in Jackson, AL, he has performed at state-qualifying levels in three sports. On all major recruiting sites, Duckworth is listed as a four-star prospect. He is an explosive dual-threat field general who led his school to a state championship in 2024 along with throwing for 325 yard and three touchdowns. On3 currently has the Gamecocks as the current favorites to land the highly-touted quarterback.

Further west, the Gamecocks are also pushing hard to land Brady Smigiiel. The four-star prospect from Newbury Park High School product towers over defenses at 6-foot-5. Smigiel also had a spectacular showing in his state championship game, despite losing to Lincoln High School, 34-27. 24/7 recruiting analyst Greg Biggins had a lot of positives when speaking about the consensus number six quarterback in the class of 2026.

“Smigiel is a big, strong armed pocket passer who has put up huge numbers since his freshman season. At the recent Under Armour Next Camp in SoCal, he had a very strong showing, with a tightened release and his usual trademark accuracy to all three levels of the field. He’s very accurate down the field, knows how to change speeds and throws with really nice touch but can put plenty of heat on his throws when he needs to. He’s a tough kid, will stand in and take a shot and not flinch. Great natural leader, locker room guy and teammate.”

In late January, Smigiel decommited from Florida St. After the decommitment, South Carolina and Michigan are the favorites to land the former Seminole commit. He is scheduled for an official visit on March 27 of this year.

It will certainly be exciting the push land one of the quarterbacks to potentially presumably be the heir apparent to LaNorris Sellers as the Gamecocks’ quarterback. 

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