USC transfer Xzavier McLeod commits to SEC rival, has stern message for Gamecock fans

Jordan Kaye
·2 min read

Nearly two months after he was dismissed from the South Carolina football team, freshman defensive lineman Xzavier McLeod has found a new home with one of the Gamecocks’ top SEC rivals.

The former Gamecock told On3’s Hayes Fawcett on Friday that he has committed to the Georgia Bulldogs to continue his college football career.

“The thing that stood out the most about Georgia is their program. They have a much better program than all the other programs,” he told Fawcett.

“The way they do things is organized and neat,” he continued to On3. “I’m happy at my new home and ready to show the Georgia fans that I’m locked in and ready to dominate Sanford (Stadium) and I’m bought into the culture. For all the South Carolina fans that spoke bad about me and don’t know any accurate information, we’ll see them in 2025.”

McLeod, a former Mr. Football in South Carolina during his time at Camden High, played in four games during the 2023 season before not traveling to the Missouri game in late October.

In a Facebook post, McLeod’s father, Herman, said that his son wanted to redshirt and the coaches said no. “So he refused to go to Missouri,” Herman wrote.

Because McLeod only played in four games, he will be able to count 2023 as his redshirt season and move on from South Carolina with four years of eligibility.

In Columbia, the 6-foot-5, 285-pound McLeod recorded just one tackle in four games but snatched an interception against Furman.

South Carolina portal losses

QB Tanner Bailey

QB Colten Gauthier

RB Mario Anderson (Memphis)

OL JonDarius Morgan (UAB)

OL Grayson Mains

OL Jaylen Nichols

WR Antwane “Juice” Wells Jr. (Ole Miss)

WR O’Mega Blake (East Carolina)

WR Landon Samson

WR Zavier Short

WR Kylic Horton

DL Xzavier McLeod (Georgia)

DL Felix Hixon

DL D’Andre Martin (Charlotte)

DL Donovan Westmoreland

DB Kajuan Banks

DB Isaiah Norris

K Mitch Jeter (Notre Dame)