South Carolina Lands Former Texas RB Christian Clark in Bid to Revive Rushing Attack
In a college football landscape increasingly shaped by the chaos of the transfer portal, South Carolina just made a move that could pay dividends in the backfield. Former Texas running back Christian Clark is heading east to join the Gamecocks, giving Shane Beamer’s offense a much-needed boost after a lackluster season on the ground.
Clark, who enters Columbia with three years of eligibility remaining, is part of a growing exodus from the Texas running back room. The Longhorns have seen four backs hit the portal, including their leading rusher Quintrevion Wisner, as well as C.J.
Baxter, Jerrick Gibson, and now Clark. That’s a significant talent drain for a program that has traditionally leaned on its depth at the position.
While Clark wasn’t the focal point in Austin last season, he showed flashes that suggest he’s more than capable of handling a bigger role. He finished third on the team with 236 rushing yards and two touchdowns, averaging a solid 4.3 yards per carry.
But it was his performance in the Citrus Bowl against Michigan that turned heads: 105 yards and a touchdown in his first career start. Paired with Arch Manning’s breakout performance, the duo gashed the Wolverines for a combined 255 rushing yards and three scores, putting an exclamation point on Texas’ ground game when it mattered most.
Still, the Longhorns’ overall rushing output in 2025 fell short of expectations. For the first time since 2017, Texas failed to eclipse 2,000 rushing yards in a season, finishing with 1,791 yards and 17 touchdowns. That’s a dip for a program that’s typically been able to churn out production regardless of who’s in the backfield.
But if Texas underwhelmed on the ground, South Carolina struggled even more. The Gamecocks managed just 1,333 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns on the season, averaging barely over three yards per carry.
Not a single back cracked the 500-yard mark. Their best performance came in a 51-7 rout of Coastal Carolina, where they ran wild for 264 yards and five touchdowns-an outlier in a season where consistency was hard to find.
Enter Clark.
For South Carolina, this is less about landing a superstar and more about injecting life into a stagnant run game. Clark brings Power Five experience, a proven ability to contribute in big moments, and a fresh set of legs to a rotation that desperately needs help.
He may not be walking into a better statistical situation, but he is stepping into an opportunity. And for a player looking to carve out a bigger role, that’s often more valuable than staying buried on a depth chart.
The move also underscores the broader volatility of the transfer portal era. With reports indicating that as many as 10,000 players entered the portal this cycle and over 6,000 still without homes, the numbers paint a sobering picture. There are simply more players than there are roster spots, and for every success story like Clark’s, there are thousands still waiting for a call that may never come.
Clark, at least, found his next chapter. And for the Gamecocks, who are trying to rebuild their identity on the ground, he might just be the right piece at the right time.