Transfer SAF Gerald Kilgore commits to Gamecocks
Dec. 17, 2023The family connection between USC and the Kilgores of Eatonton, GA paid off Sunday afternoon with the older son SAF Gerald Kilgore (6-0 202) announcing that he will transfer from Tennessee Tech next month. His brother, Jalon, was a pleasant surprise as a freshman safety this season earning Freshman All-American honors.
Kilgore was a quarterback coming out of high school and made the transition to the secondary at Tennessee Tech after redshirting his first season. This season he had 37 tackles with 2. 5 tackles for loss and five pass deflections. He feels he proved he can make the step up to a league like the SEC.
“Oh, most definitely,” Kilgore said recently. “I feel like a lot of guys looking at the experience that I’ve had on defense, in their opinion wouldn’t think that I might be mentally ready. I know, me personally, I wouldn’t have gotten into the Portal in the first place if I didn’t believe that I could be playing on the next level. I’m taking this chance on myself and everything is working out pretty good for me.”
Last week Kilgore made official visits to FAU and West Virginia. Those followed his official visit to USC and gave him a chance to make sure he was making the right call.
“A lot of situations, you have to have your coaches which are driving that force for you to want to be there,” Kilgore said. ”I feel like coach Beamer and the rest of the coaching staff provide a real good strong relationship, pushing the guys, allowing everybody to be themselves but also trying their best to bring the best out of everyone so they can win.”