Five-star athlete Nyckoles Harbor commits to South Carolina over Oregon, Michigan, Maryland

Nyckoles Harbor, one of two uncommitted five-star prospects in the Class of 2023, signed with South Carolina on Wednesday. Harbor, from Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington D.C., is ranked No. 19 overall and the No. 1 athlete in the 247Sports Composite. Here’s what you need to know:

  • Harbor took an official visit to Oregon last weekend and also strongly considered Maryland and Michigan.
  • He is the seventh five-star prospect to sign with South Carolina of the modern recruiting era, joining (in chronological order) defensive end Jadeveon Clowney (2011), defensive end Jordan Burch (2020), running back Marcus Lattimore (2010), defensive lineman Zachh Pickens (2019), running back Demetris Summers (2003) and linebacker Ricardo Hurley (2002).
  • South Carolina’s class is ranked No. 16 in the nation and No. 7 in the SEC.
  • Harbor is the third five-star prospect from Washington, D.C., in the last four recruiting cycles, joining wide receiver Rakim Jarrett (Class of 2020, Maryland) and quarterback Caleb Williams (Class of 2021, signed with Oklahoma and transferred to USC).

The Athletic’s instant analysis:

What this means for South Carolina

It’s clearly the biggest win of Shane Beamer’s career as a coach. Beamer is relentless on the recruiting trail and seems to be making the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast more of a priority for the Gamecocks, perhaps as he uses connections from his Virginia Tech days. Harbor played defensive line and tight end/wide receiver in high school and is listed as an athlete on his recruiting profile. It’s hard to underscore what this means for the Gamecocks. — Raynor

Wow#WelcomeHome @Nyck1k !!!#AboveAllEl23 #WhosNext ?

Let’s Go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🤙🏻

— Shane Beamer (@CoachSBeamer) February 1, 2023

What they’re saying

“Football, I can go to a building school. It doesn’t really matter to me. I can be building or already built. I went to (Archbishop) Caroll and if y’all know who Carroll is, Carroll was, ooh, Lord. Carroll was, I think what, 4-6 when I came in? We went 8-5 my freshman year, we went 13-1 my junior year and we went I think it was 10-2, 11-2 my next year. So I’ve gone to programs that have struggled in the past and once we got there, we rebuilt it. We brought Caroll two championships and all that. So that’s that.

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“And then track and field, I want to go to a place — it doesn’t have to necessarily be a great team, like overall talent. I feel like if I commit somewhere, the talent’s going to follow. But if your coach is good, then you’re going to be straight. The coach is the No. 1 part.” — Harbor at the Under Armour All-American Game in late December

(Photo: Jack Gruber / USA Today)

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