South Carolina signing junior college defensive backs Keisean Nixon and Kaleb Chalmers may not have registered as gigantic news on a national scale (both were rated three stars), but the news was indeed gigantic for the Gamecocks program.



Nixon, a California native from Arizona Western Junior College, and Chalmers, a Greenwood native from Northwest Mississippi Junior College who began his collegiate career at Clemson, add two things to the Carolina roster that are virtually non-existent at present- depth and options.



Both will enroll at USC in January and take part in spring practice.



When you watch Nixon on film, you see speed, you see athleticism and you see versatility. He could be a cornerback. He could be a safety. He could be a nickel. He’s definitely someone that can factor into the return game right away. The Los Angeles native also plays with a chip on his shoulder and like many football prospects from the City of Angels, he has a love for the game that is evident with the way he competes. Nothing has ever been given to Nixon, who was overlooked coming out of high school, so it’s been his hard work and competitive desire, along with his natural ability, that has propelled him to the Power 5 level of college football. Guys like this are what you want more of in your program. They not only have the talent to back up high expectations on the field, they are “glue” guys off the field as well. The Gamecocks got in relatively early on him and landed him over Tennessee, Mississippi State, Georgia, UCLA and others when all was said and done. It’s tough to pin down exactly where Nixon will play position-wise in 2017, but it’s a safe bet that he will contribute on the field. The guess here is that he ends up at safety.



Chalmers was a player that the previous Gamecocks staff passed on, but Clemson wanted (similar to Jadar Johnson and Marcus Edmond, two in-state players who are starting for the Tigers). Had he not run into some off-field issues, Chalmers would have seen significant playing time for the Tigers this season. The 6-foot-1 athlete could end up at cornerback, but also could be a safety or nickel, so the versatility is there. Plus, there is the Greenwood factor. That school has a very low “bust rate” and most of the prospects that come from that program (and most have ended up at South Carolina) end up being contributors at the college level with many moving on to the NFL. Chalmers will help right away and is a potential starter at whatever position he ends up at.



You add these two players to the core of South Carolina’s secondary that is returning - Jamarcus King, Chris Lammons, Rashad Fenton, Steven Montac, D.J. Smith and Antoine Wilder- along with the freshmen coming in- Hamsah Nasirildeen, Jaylin Dickerson, Tavyn Jackson Zay Brown and Jamyest Williams- and all of a sudden, what was a paper-thin spot on the Gamecocks roster with limited options becomes a bit deeper and gives USC defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson and head coach Will Muschamp (who personally coaches the safeties) more depth and talent to piece a secondary together in 2017. It’s yet another example of the work that what is front of this staff when it was hired just more than one calendar year ago and the short amount of time it has taken to add needed parts.