What Justin Stepp is looking for as he builds Gamecocks’ receiving group
Justin Stepp is just getting started on the job as new receivers coach at South Carolina.
The former Pelion High School standout and former Arkansas assistant coach had been on the ground in Columbia for just over 24 hours when he attended his first team meeting Sunday.
While he is just learning what he has to work with on the USC roster, Stepp knows what type of player he is looking for and recruiting to the Gamecock program. He detailed those characteristics during a 30-minute session with reporters Monday, which brought him to tears at one point about being back in his home state.
“The first thing is, ‘Do they love football?’” Stepp said. “No matter what position it is, do they love doing it? Everyone has the same amount of hours, in the 20-hour practice week. What do you do outside the mandatory time? That is going to make you better than anybody else. That is going to separate you.”
Stepp said the first thing he asks a high school coach about in recruiting is the player’s work ethic. He also looks for how they get off the line of scrimmage in press or man coverage. Speed and route running are important to Stepp but not the top things he looks for.
“You don’t have to be completely polished as a route runner or catcher of the ball. We can work on those things,” Stepp said. “But the one thing you got to have is you got to love the game of football. If you don’t love it at this level, you will get exposed.”
Stepp will have his work cut out for him in his first year with the Gamecocks receiving group, but he has shown the ability to recruit and bring in top-flight receivers.
Rivals named him a top recruiter nationally for the 2019 class when he signed four four-star receivers at Arkansas.
With Shi Smith and his team-high 57 catches gone to get ready for the NFL, there are plenty of question marks with other USC receivers on the roster. The trio of transfer Jalen Brooks, Josh Vann and Xavier Legette combined for 28 catches last season.
The Gamecocks signed two receivers in the early period, South Pointe High’s O’Mega Blake and Sam Reynolds from nationally-ranked Thompson High in Alabama. Stepp said he knows some of the players on the roster from recruiting them and plans to dig into things more deeply this week.
Stepp has already been active in reaching out to potential recruits, extending offers to Class of 2022 receivers Antonio Williams and Brenen Thomspon. Williams is an in-state standout at Dutch Fork and was offered by previous coaching staff, while Thompson is a highly-coveted prospect out of Texas.
Devin Hyatt, a Class of 2023 receiver with Williams at Dutch Fork, also was offered by South Carolina.
“You have everything you need here,” Stepp said. “There is no reason why you can’t recruit the best kids in this state and in the country to come play here. And I want guys as passionate about playing for the university as I am about coaching here.”
This story was originally published January 14, 2021 at 4:00 AM with the headline "What Justin Stepp is looking for as he builds Gamecocks’ receiving group."
