When wide receiver Shamier Jeffery first arrived at South Carolina, his brother, Alshon, had already entrenched himself atop the depth chart, cemented by a breakout 1,517-yard 2010 season.
In 2011 the elder Jeffery once again led Gamecocks wide receivers in virtually every statistical category, and while Shamier used the year to redshirt, Alshon made his break to the NFL after the conclusion of the season.
With the Chicago Bears selecting the six-foot-four Jeffery in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft, Shamier was left behind to build his own legacy, now out of the shadow of his older brother.
“There’s certain things that he does like him, but we try not to compare them too much,” wide receivers coach Steve Spurrier Jr. said. “He certainly has very strong hands … like Alshon did. Alshon was a great one, but that’s going to happen; you’re going to get those comparisons both ways, good and bad.”
Shamier struggled to find room on a crowded 2012 team that featured standout players like Bruce Ellington and Ace Sanders. He played in games against East Carolina, Arkansas and Michigan, but did not log a catch in any contest.
As a redshirt sophomore, Shamier caught his first career pass in a 52-7 rout of Arkansas, ultimately managing five catches for 32 yards. He finished the year with six catches, which was the ninth-highest reception total on a team where 20 players caught at least one pass.
“What’s interesting too, is the better your team gets, the more depth you have,” Spurrier Jr. added. “You know, you just don’t get a ton of opportunities, and the opportunities you get, you better do well.”
Now a redshirt junior, Jeffery has been hitting the weight room more frequently this offseason, a step that he calls “the most important thing.”
And although experienced wide receivers Shaq Roland, Damiere Byrd and Nick Jones are still around, Spurrier Jr. noted that Jeffery’s offseason bodes well for a potential breakout season.
“He looks lighter, he looks quicker,” Spurrier Jr. said. “I think he was the fastest guy on our team in our shuttle run. So, his quickness and his change of direction are extremely, extremely quick.”
While Shamier finished his 2013 campaign with six catches, his brother averaged over five catches per game with the Bears on the way to his first Pro Bowl season.
Alshon caught 89 passes for 1,421 yards, while adding seven touchdowns as well as 105 yards on the ground. He finished sixth in the NFL in receiving—second in the NFC—and was the leading receiver on a team that featured perennial Pro-Bowler Brandon Marshall.
Comparisons of the two brothers do sometimes arise, but Shamier says it is not fair to compare the two.
“My brother,” Shamier said,” he was always special. He was like a [Jadeveon] Clowney—always special.”
But now with the exit of tenured wide receiver Bruce Ellington and the transition into a more traditional passing offense, the possibility of the younger Jeffery becoming a special player is more likely than before.
“We’re certainly a staff that gives people the chance to go play and see how they do,” Spurrier Jr. said. “I think he wants his shot to go play a little bit. We’ll send him out there and see how he does.”