Gamecocks freshman Vicari Swain not looking back after Deion Sanders’ recruiting push

When Coach Prime comes calling, it can be difficult not to answer.

Defensive back Vicari Swain had already been committed to South Carolina for months when new Colorado coach and NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders reached out to him in December.

Sanders had started at Colorado just weeks before, making the jump to Boulder after three seasons coaching at the historically Black university Jackson State. Even in those early days on the job, flipping the four-star recruit Swain from the Gamecocks to the Buffaloes was a priority for Sanders.

Just before signing day, Swain took the flight from his native Georgia to Boulder and listened to Sanders’ pitch. Still, it wasn’t enough to pull Swain away. He signed his letter of intent to play for the Gamecocks days later and hasn’t looked back.

“I was getting recruited by like one of the best football players to ever do it,” Swain said during USC’s football media day, while wearing his crisp new garnet-colored uniform.

“He’s a wise man, a smart man. But I was already committed, and I wanted to be a man of my word and stay with South Carolina.”

It’s easy to see why Sanders would be interested in a player with Swain’s skill set. Much like Sanders himself — who played defensive back, receiver and Major League Baseball throughout his professional career — Swain was a jack-of-all-trades at Central High in Carrollton, Georgia.

The 6-foot-1, 183-pound athlete starred as both a wide receiver and safety for his high school team, racking up over 2,000 receiving yards, 17 touchdown receptions and 13 interceptions in his career, while also playing for the baseball team. Throughout the recruiting process, Swain drew interest from the likes of Maryland, Vanderbilt, Mississippi State and other schools.

“Half the schools I was getting recruited by wanted me to be receiver, and some of them had wanted me to play defense,” Swain said. “I kind of had to make a decision if I wanted to be receiver or defense. So I kind of switched it up, like, ‘Everybody wants me to be a receiver, so I’m going to be something different — a corner.’ ”

What drew Swain to South Carolina when he initially committed last August was his relationship with defensive backs coach Torrian Gray. Entering his third season with the Gamecocks, Gray has a lengthy history of helping defensive backs make it to the NFL, producing stars like Brandon Flowers, Kam Chancellor, the Fuller brothers and most recently Cam Smith at USC. Swain aspires to join those ranks.

Since he’s arrived in Columbia, Swain has worked closely with Gray to refine the defensive aspects of his game, and Swain has found a mentor in the form of veteran corner Marcellas Dial. This season will mark the first time Swain has worked exclusively on defense, but he’s already seen ways that his receiver skills translate, especially when it comes to reading offenses.

“I can just look at the formation of an offense,” Swain said. “Oh, ‘They’re in this, they can run these route combinations.’ It kind of clicks in my mind since I was a receiver.”

The defensive back room is one of the younger groups for the Gamecocks, with veterans like Smith and Darius Rush departing. Last year, true freshmen Nick Emmanwori and DQ Smith both made their mark on the secondary after injuries pressed them into action.

It’s possible Swain will have the chance to make an early impact, too.

“I mean, that’s the goal,” Swain said. “As long as I just do what I need to do.”