Why Gamecocks mobbed this former walk-on when he scored first career touchdown

Bradley Dunn got rewarded earlier this year by being put on scholarship with the South Carolina football team.

On Saturday, the former senior walk-on earned another special honor: his first college touchdown in the final moments of the Gamecocks’ 56-12 win over Wofford at Williams-Brice Stadium.

Dunn was mobbed by his teammates after the score.

“It is a testament to this program for the excitement for a guy like Bradley Dunn,” USC coach Shane Beamer said. “Hammond, his high school team, wins a state championship last night and he gets a walk-off touchdown in his last play at Williams-Brice Stadium. You saw the pure joy our sideline had for him.”

Dunn is a fifth-year senior but didn’t take part in Saturday’s senior day festivities. Beamer’s comments suggested it was likely Dunn’s final home game as a Gamecock.

Dunn graduated this summer with a degree in sport and entertainment management. Even though he had his degree and had been around for four seasons, he felt there was some unfinished football business.

Dunn was a standout at nearby Hammond and was part of three S.C. Independent School Association state championships with the Skyhawks. He was high school teammates with two of USC’s high-profile signees in Jordan Burch and Alex Huntley.

Huntley has been a mainstay for the USC defensive line and played his final game at Williams-Brice on Saturday. Burch transferred in the offseason and his having big year with No. 1 Oregon. Burch on Saturday night posted the video of Dunn’s touchdown on his Instagram story.

Dunn walked on with the Gamecocks in July of 2020 and has played sparingly during his career at USC. He was on the scout team during his first two years.

Prior to Saturday, Dunn played mainly on special teams for the Gamecocks, but his hard work and determination left an impact on Beamer and the coaching staff, which opted to give him a scholarship back in August.

“Love the energy here by Bradley Dunn,” Beamer said in the video in which Dunn and Ronnie Porter got their scholarships. “That’s what he does every single day in the five years he’s been in this program. And that’s why he’s on scholarship, too.”

With the game against Wofford well in hand, Dunn played on South Carolina’s last drive. He was a workhorse for the Gamecocks on the drive, carrying it six times for 42 yards and catching a 13-yard pass.

Dunn capped off the drive with a 5-yard touchdown run as he stiff-armed a Wofford defender and rolled into the end zone. After scoring, the celebration resembled a game-winning touchdown as he was surrounded by his teammates and some Gamecock coaches in the corner near the end zone.

“That is the most excited I have been in a long time. I love that for him. He deserved that,” said Huntley, a teammate of Dunn’s at Hammond. “He was carrying it well the whole night. I’m glad he got in. It was a great night.”