Could South Carolina’s prodigal wide receiving son be returning home to Columbia?
In December of 2014, it was reported that Shaq Roland was no longer a Gamecock; a month later, it was reported that the wide receiver would finish up his collegiate career at the FCS level. However, Roland never played at that level in 2015, leaving him with a year of eligibility remaining.
And, according to 247Sports.com, that one year could be spent on the campus where his career began.... Roland could return to the Gamecocks football program and USC would take him back provided things work out academically, according to multiple sources.
...
To return to the Gamecocks, Roland would have to have graduated from college and come in as a graduate transfer.
A return to USC would mean the resumption of what had been an up-and-down career with the Gamecocks both on and off the field.
In 2013, the wide receiver was suspended for a total of three games for unspecified violations of team policies. In 2014, Roland was third on the team in receiving yards (356) and receiving touchdowns (four), and fourth in receptions (26). Even with that statistical success, Roland didn’t travel with the team for a game against Kentucky because he failed to attend a team meeting and a walkthrough.
A couple of days before Christmas, Roland quit the team.
A four-star member of USC’s 2012 recruiting class, Roland was rated as the No. 10 receiver in the country and the No. 1 player at any position in the state of South Carolina. Despite all of that recruiting accolades, Roland finished the first iteration of his Gamecock career with 56 catches for 891 yards and 10 touchdowns.