What Karon Prunty’s departure means for South Carolina defense
Well, that was quick.
After committing to South Carolina in late June, former Kansas defensive back Karon Prunty lasted only about a month in Columbia.
A USC athletic department spokesperson confirmed to The State Thursday afternoon that Prunty had entered the transfer portal again. Matt Zenitz of On3 Sports first reported the news.
Adding Prunty in the offseason felt like a major coup for Shane Beamer and his staff as they work to replace Israel Mukuamu and Jaycee Horn in the secondary, while also improving a defense that ranked 10th in the Southeastern Conference a season ago.
“They just want me out here locking people down basically,” Prunty said during South Carolina media day last week. “(They want me) taking half the field away. That’s mainly what everybody is wanting me to do.”
Prunty hasn’t spoken publicly about his departure, but did post this message on his Instagram story Wednesday: “Been tryna heal up this whole time but it’s been too long I’m starting to realize it’s permanent scars.”
With Prunty now expected to leave South Carolina, junior Cam Smith should take the lead as the Gamecocks’ No. 1 cornerback whenever he returns to the field. Smith has shown flashes of brilliance the past two seasons, but is currently sidelined with a broken bone in his foot. He told reporters last week he’s hoping to be back for the season opener Sept. 4 against Eastern Illinois.
During Tuesday’s practice, Georgia Southern transfer David Spaulding ran with the No. 1 defense alongside Georgia Military College import Marcellas Dial at nickel.
Assumption University (Massachusetts) transfer Carlins Platel ran at nickel with the No. 2 defense during the portion of Tuesday’s session that was open to reporters. Platel previously played corner at Assumption and could be leaned on even more with Prunty’s departure.
“It’s definitely going to be a jump coming from coming from Assumption to playing in the best conference in college football,” Platel told The State over the summer. “But the amount of work that I’m putting in with my position skill and being able to lift heavy and run fast — I’ve been putting work in every aspect of my game for the last (few months) and I’m just ready to show it all out.”
Behind Smith, Platel, Spaulding and Dial, Isaiah Norris could quickly be counted on after he finally arrived on campus this week per a USC spokesperson. Norris played with Dial at Georgia Military College last season and should be a nice addition in the defensive backfield.
South Carolina redshirt freshman O’Donnell Fortune has also earned wide praise this offseason for his improvement. Fortune played safety and corner at the high school level in Sumter and is another piece that could be added to the mix at cornerback.
“For a guy his size, he’s a physically-minded football player,” defensive coordinator Clayton White said of Fortune. “He brings it. He tries to knock people out. He tries to be a physical football player.”
South Carolina finished the 2020 season allowing more than 250 yards passing per game. With the departures of Horn and Mukuamu to the NFL, there was already a changing of the guard underway in Columbia. Prunty was expected to be a part of that movement until his entrance into the transfer portal.
Now it’ll be on the Gamecocks’ 15 scholarship defensive backs — five of whom are transfers — to fill those voids.
“We need to have a certain swagger, which we don’t have just because we’re so green to have a swagger as a group right now,” cornerbacks coach Torrian Gray said in April. “... A lot of guys are learning how to play football on this level, what it takes in meeting rooms, what it takes in the individual period, what it takes doing a specific technique.”
This story was originally published August 12, 2021 at 1:47 PM with the headline "What Karon Prunty’s departure means for South Carolina defense."
