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That 5-star feeling! Elite recruit Nyckoles Harbor picks South Carolina

The biggest recruiting moment of the Shane Beamer era is here.

Five-star athlete Nyckoles Harbor announced his commitment to South Carolina on Wednesday over finalists Oregon, Michigan, Maryland and Miami in a ceremony at Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C.

Harbor is the No. 19 player and No. 1 athlete in the 2023 class, per the 247Sports Composite.

Harbor is the first five-star commitment for the Gamecocks since Beamer took over as head coach in December 2020. He’s currently rated as the No. 19 player and No. 1 athlete in the 2023 class. Harbor is also the fifth-highest rated recruit to commit to South Carolina since 2010 — trailing only Jadeveon Clowney, Marcus Lattimore, Zacch Pickens and Jordan Burch.

The two-sport standout has aspirations of running track at the Olympic level and is also expected to compete for the South Carolina track and field team. On the football side, Harbor could play either tight end or defensive end, though it’s anticipated he’ll stick on offense.

South Carolina’s tight end room is in the midst of a makeover after losing the top four members of the room from the 2022 squad — Jaheim Bell (transfer), Austin Stogner (transfer), Traevon Kenion (retirement), Nate Adkins (graduation). USC has since added three transfers at the position in Trey Knox (Arkansas), Joshua Simon (Western Kentucky) and NIck Elksnis (Florida). South Carolina also signed high school prospects Connor Cox and Reid Mikeska in the 2023 cycle.

Harbor is the first five-star recruit to commit to South Carolina since Burch did so in the 2020 class. He’s also one of four players ranked in the top 150 of the 2023 or 2024 class to pledge to the Gamecocks in the last 10 days following commitments from 2024 prospects offensive tackle Kam Pringle (No. 46 overall), linebacker Wendell Gregory (No. 130 overall) and tight end Michael Smith (No. 134 overall).

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