Trent Seaborn and his family arrived at the South Carolina football facility at 8 a.m. on Saturday to find the parking lot completely empty, which puzzled them. It didn’t make sense, especially since it was peak recruiting season and junior days were happening all over the country. Just the week before, the Gamecocks had hosted dozens of recruits. However, the Seaborns soon spotted USC coach Shane Beamer on the balcony, inviting them to come inside.
Once there, South Carolina had gathered a variety of staff members—assistant coaches, analysts, academic advisors, and strength coaches—just for Seaborn’s visit.
“I thought there’s a junior day going on,” Seaborn asked offensive coordinator Mike Shula.
“Yeah,” Shula replied. “The junior day is for you.”
Even though it was a two-day unofficial visit where the Seaborn family covered all expenses, Seaborn, a four-star quarterback from Alabaster, Alabama, said the weekend felt more like an official visit.
“The fact that I was the only recruit up there, it made me feel really special,” Seaborn shared. “My parents loved it. They’re absolutely blown away by obviously the facilities and all the physical stuff, but also the people we met. The people that we met are just out of this world.”
Seaborn, who led Thompson High to a state title last season as a sophomore, is ranked as a Top 20 quarterback for the Class of 2027 and already holds a dozen SEC offers. South Carolina’s interest in him began last summer when then-offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains extended an offer and invited him for a private workout.
While Loggains was Seaborn’s primary recruiter, he also occasionally spoke with Shula, who was an offensive analyst at the time. After Loggains moved on to become Appalachian State’s head coach and Shula was promoted at USC, Seaborn’s connection with South Carolina remained strong.
This connection deepened further during the recent visit. On Sunday, the Seaborns joined Shula at The Basilica of Saint Peter in downtown Columbia for Mass.
“Man, it was beautiful,” Seaborn recalled. “That was the first church I’ve been to where an organ has played. It was so incredible.”
After Mass, the focus shifted back to football. At the facility, Seaborn, Shula, analyst Davis Koetter, and others spent over three hours in the quarterback room. They discussed Shula’s approach to South Carolina’s offense, reviewed Seaborn’s clips, and even had Seaborn draw on the whiteboard.
“I actually thought I did pretty well (on the whiteboard),” Seaborn said. “I was able to regurgitate everything that he put on me. He said I’ve done better than some QBs they’ve seen on a whiteboard.”
Shula also broke down Seaborn’s film and gave him coaching advice.
“He was telling me, ‘Look through your film and look to where you set and define your drop or where you set up and maybe your drop is a little shaky. And work on that,’ ” Seaborn explained. “And he said the biggest thing, or the biggest transition from high school to college ball, is knowing your protections and how to adjust that.”
Seaborn is one of several quarterbacks South Carolina is considering for the future.
A few weeks ago, Beamer traveled to California to visit 2026 four-star Brady Smigiel, and recently, he and Shula visited 2026 five-star quarterback Jared Curtis. The Gamecocks are also still in the running for 2026 four-star Landon Duckworth, who initially committed to South Carolina before decommitting last summer.
As for the 2027 quarterbacks, it appears South Carolina has its sights set on Seaborn. Regarding his own decision, Seaborn mentioned he hopes to commit before his junior season begins next August, although he doesn’t have “a specific timeline.”
“Something Coach Shula advised my dad and I is, don’t rush the process,” Seaborn said. “Take your time. Really be thorough with what college you choose so you can stick with that college.”
