Report: Former Gamecock staff member landing role in NFL team’s front office
Former South Carolina Director of Player Personnel Drew Hughes was originally said to be heading to Texas. Now, reports have him headed to the Sunshine State for an NFL gig.
Hughes will be joining the Jacksonville Jaguars organization, according to Football Scoop. He is expected to be assisting new Jaguars general manager Trent Balke in the new-look Jacksonville front office.
Jacksonville cleaned house in the offseason and hired former Ohio State and Florida coach Urban Meyer as its new head coach. Meyer and other Jacksonville personnel were at Clemson on Friday to watch Trevor Lawrence’s Pro Day workout. The Jags have the top pick in April’s NFL Draft.
Hughes was just at USC one year but held similar positions at Tennessee, Florida, N.C. State and Central Florida. At Florida, he worked with former Gamecock coach Will Muschamp, who reunited with Hughes in Columbia. Shane Beamer was going to retain Hughes but he was rumored to be leaving USC for a similar position at Texas last month. But that never materialized.
Hughes is the third former Muschamp staff member headed to the NFL. Tracy Rocker was introduced as the new Philadelphia Eagles defensive line coach this week, and running backs coach Des Kitchings was hired by the Atlanta Falcons.
At South Carolina, Hughes was in charge of the Gamecocks’ recruiting department and worked alongside Jessica Jackson, who heads up the on-campus aspect of recruiting, and Justin King and Zach Frehse, who manage the graphics/edits side of things.
“I’ve always said no one works for me, we all work together,” Hughes said in March.
A high school player in Alabama, he planned for a future as a high school coach. He started on the video side, shooting practice. He then started helping the grad assistants break down tape and then found his way to the recruiting room.
This story was originally published February 12, 2021 at 12:31 PM with the headline "Report: Former Gamecock staff member landing role in NFL team’s front office."
