The South Carolina defensive line will welcome a few new faces this season, bringing in five transfers to try and replicate the production from last season.
South Carolina had multiple players move onto the professional level, transfer out of the program or graduate this past season. T.J. Sanders, the second defensive Gamecock drafted in the 2025 NFL Draft, was selected with the No. 41 overall pick by the Buffalo Bills. In the fourth round, both Kyle Kennard and Tonka Hemingway were selected with the No. 125 and No. 135 overall pick, respectively.
The Gamecocks also lost three defensive linemen in the transfer portal this past offseason. Redshirt freshman defensive end Wendell Gregory transferred to Oklahoma State, redshirt junior Jamaal Whyce transferred to Marshall and senior defensive end Elijah Davis transferred to Troy.
Returners
The Gamecocks managed to bring back six players on the defensive line, including sophomore edge rusher Dylan Stewart, redshirt defensive tackle Nick Barrett and senior edge player Bryan Thomas Jr.
Stewart started all 13 games his first year and recorded 6.5 sacks, which was third among all FBS freshmen.
Heading into this season, Stewart said he looks to step up this year as a returning player.
“Just being a vocal leader, talking to my teammates, trying to help them as much as possible,” Stewart said.
Stewart has been named as a preseason All-American and is on the 2025 Preseason Coaches All-SEC first team heading into this year.
Thomas Jr. is the most tenured Gamecock on the defensive line with four years of experience. This past season he appeared in 12 games, missing just the season opener with a hamstring injury. He had 23 tackles along with 4.5 sacks as a backup defensive end behind Kennard and Stewart .
He was also awarded the 2025 Gamecock Toughness Award, an award that recognizes players who demonstrate exceptional toughness and resilience throughout the spring practices, for the defense.
During the spring, Thomas Jr. said he’s prepared to be better in the fall.
“Reading the key of the tackles, looking at their steps or who they’re looking at,” Thomas Jr. said.
Barrett is another veteran who looks to bring experience to the defense this year. The redshirt senior has appeared in 39 games over his past four years as a Gamecock.
Last season, he redshirted, only appearing in five games and recording five tackles. He looks to make more of an impact during his final season as a Gamecock.
Freshmen and Transfers
According to On3, South Carolina football recruited the No. 18 overall class this past offseason. Amongst the incoming freshmen, this year’s class brought in four players on the defensive line, including four-star Jaquavious Dodd and three-star prospects Anthony Addison, Kobby Sakyi-Prah and Caleb Williams.
In addition to the freshmen, the Gamecocks added five transfers to the defensive line in Missouri redshirt sophomore transfer Jaylen Brown, Texas A&M redshirt junior transfer Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy, Bowling Green redshirt junior transfer Davonte Miles, Georgia Southern redshirt sophomore transfer Troy Pikes and Charlotte graduate transfer Demon Clowney.
Brown appeared in two games for the Tigers last season and in 39 snaps had a tackle against both Murray State and South Carolina. Brown suffered an injury during spring training and is expected to miss some time at the start of the season.
Brownlow-Dindy is another transfer from within the SEC and played in two games where he had one tackle in his third season for the Aggies. This month, he talked about what he’s bringing to the defensive line.
“I bring a lot of power to the D-line, but I also bring some finesse,” Brownlow-Dindy said.
Miles, Pikes and Clowney all come from outside the SEC and round out the rest of the transfers.
Pikes played in every game last season for Troy but only started in one. He finished the season with 13 tackles as a backup defensive tackle. Miles had 12 tackles in his 12 appearances last season for the Falcons.
Clowney is on his fifth team looking to make an impact on defense. He started his career at Ole Miss for three seasons before transferring to UNC Charlotte for a season. He briefly committed to Louisville for the spring before committing to the Gamecocks on April 10. In his four years, he's accumulated 69 tackles, 13 of those for a loss, along with 6.5 sacks.
Demon Clowney is also the cousin of Jadeveon Clowney, a former No. 1 overall pick for the Houston Texans and 2012 SEC Defensive Player of the Year for the Gamecocks.
What’s next?
South Carolina will play its first game against Virginia Tech on Sunday Aug. 31 in the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. Kickoff is at 3 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.