In this ACCSports.com series, we’re looking at every state within the ACC’s footprint and figuring out which programs own them in recruiting.
Who Owns Florida In Recruiting?
Who Owns Georgia In Recruiting?
We continue to travel north, as we examine South Carolina today. South Carolina, like Florida and Georgia, is a battleground state between the ACC and the SEC. It’s unique that there are only two major in-state schools vying for the best prospects in the state, and both are high major programs and from separate conferences. Thus, some of the most heated recruiting battles take place in the Palmetto State
South Carolina isn’t an overly fruitful state for blue-chip prospects, but it still has some of the best high school football along the East Coast. Some of the top players in the SEC and ACC hail from South Carolina.
To see which schools own South Carolina in recruiting, we scanned the last five recruiting classes (2010-2014). We looked at the top 20 prospects in each class (as ranked by Rivals) and where they decided to play their college ball. Here is what we found out.
Schools Who Signed The Most Top-20 South Carolina Recruits From 2010-2014
Clemson – 27
South Carolina – 27
Tennessee – 7
South Carolina State – 5
East Carolina – 4
Georgia – 3
N.C. State – 3
Kentucky – 3
Who Owns It: Clemson and South Carolina
Dominant ACC Team: Clemson
Percentage Of Top 20 That Went ACC: 36 percent
Percentage of Top 20 That Went SEC: 45 percent
Percentage Of Top 20 That Stayed In-State: 59 percent
Biggest Out-Of-State Predator: Tennessee
Biggest Haul Of Top 20 Recruits In One Class: 9 – South Carolina in 2014