Will Muschamp’s South Carolina program pulled off a massive coup on the recruiting trail late last week when the Gamecocks reached into Georgia and beat out the Bulldogs for the nation’s No. 1 dual-threat quarterback of the 2022 recruiting cycle, Gunner Stockton.

That act alone breathes new life into Muschamp’s South Carolina program, which is coming off a 4-win season, but sometimes all it takes is an elite quarterback to change the fortunes of a college football program.

Undoubtedly, South Carolina believes it has found that in the five-star Rabun County standout Stockton, who scored 62 total touchdowns last fall and is regarded among the most elite prospects in the nation for the 2022 cycle by 247Sports Composite Rankings.

In a recent interview with Blitz Sports GA, the Tiger, Ga., native had this to say when asked what convinced him to pull the trigger and commit to the Gamecocks.

“I was in Columbia just feeling like, I could live here and I just feel at home. I like the people and the fan base is crazy. It was awesome,” Stockton said.

If you didn’t know, Stockton plays for Jaybo Shaw (the brother of Connor Shaw) at Rabun County. Taking that into consideration, it’s no coincidence that Stockton grew up looking up to Connor’s success in Columbia.

“It was pretty cool because he was my role model growing up, just watching him every Saturday when he played. It’s pretty awesome,” Stockton added.

Could the Gamecocks have found their next Connor Shaw? That’s some incredibly lofty expectations for a young man that still has two years of high school football remaining but that’s the expectation that comes with being rated as the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback in the nation.