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How South Carolina football’s Alex Huntley got the name ‘Boogie’ and a leader on defense

COLUMBIA — It’s almost rare to hear the name Alex Huntley around South Carolina football’s facilities.

Unless it’s a formality, it’s almost always Boogie.

Huntley told The Greenville News that as a child, he crawled so fast his brother said “Look at him boogie,” and by the time he played football at age 4, his mom yelled out her first “Let’s go Boogie.”

Since then, it’s all he’s ever known.

Huntley has become a 6-foot-4, 303-pound defensive lineman that is cherished by his teammates and coaches.

Kyle Kennard, a transfer edge rusher who has the second most sacks in the SEC this season with 8.5, sang the praises of the defensive linemen.

He highlighted those who plug the interior, fill the gaps, and allow him to explode and find quarterbacks.

“The things that they do for the rest of us to make big plays, it shouldn’t go unnoticed,” Kennard said. “That’s just as big as making a sack. Can never go understated what they do, they’re incredible players.”

At the core of the defensive line has been Huntley.

The Gamecocks (4-3,2-3 SEC) will need him to continue be that player against No. 11 Texas A&M (7-1, 5-0) on Saturday (7:30 p.m., ABC) at Williams-Brice Stadium.

What Alex ‘Boogie’ Huntley means for South Carolina football

Huntley played high school football five miles from Williams-Brice Stadium at the Hammond School, and was the fourth best recruit in the state in 2020, and a four-star ranked defender according to 247Sports.

As he grew older in coach Shane Beamer’s program, his stats ballooned as did his playing time, starting 11 of 12 games last season, logging 33 tackles, 18 solo tackles and two sacks. He even scored a touchdown on a trick play against Vanderbilt last November. In 2023, he was named a permanent captain, and his glue for the interior defense continued to harden.

The redshirt senior’s final season started off as…


Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/south-carolina-footballs-alex-huntley-091214237.html

Author : Greenville News

Publish date : 2024-10-31 09:12:14

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