Jason Barnes

Veteran receiver who returns for his final campaign in the Garnet & Black… has the most game appearances (43) among the receiving corps… moved to the slot receiver in the spring after playing wide out in his first three seasons… is penciled in as a starter entering the fall… looks for a bounce-back season, as he caught just six passes in 2010 after logging 53 receptions in the previous two seasons combined… blessed with excellent size at 6-4 and 213 pounds… enters his final campaign with 60 catches for 730 yards… has made 17 career starts… has two career touchdown catches, both coming at Ole Miss in 2008.

2010: Played in all 14 games… was a regular in the receiving rotation… totaled six catches for 63 yards… caught two passes for 24 yards in win at Vanderbilt… also had two catches for 14 yards in win vs. Troy… member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll.

2009: Played in all 13 games, starting seven times… caught 26 passes for 287 yards, an average of 11.0 yards per catch… logged a season-high six receptions for 46 yards at Alabama.

2008: Ranked fourth on the team with 27 receptions for 346 yards, 12.8 yards per catch… scored a pair of touchdowns… started nine games… made his first start of the season against UAB… responded with three catches for 46 yards… had his best game as a Gamecock at Ole Miss when he caught seven passes for 76 yards and a pair of touchdowns, the first two of his career… caught four passes for a career-best 88 yards, all in the fourth quarter, in the come-from-behind win at Kentucky… also had three catches against LSU and three catches at Clemson… had five catches in the Outback Bowl against Iowa… named the Most Improved Wide Receiver during spring drills.

2007: Saw action each of the first four games of the season, including his first career start at LSU… caught his only pass of the season, a 34-yard reception, against South Carolina State… injured his left foot in the loss to LSU and spent most of the remainder of the season on crutches… gained a medical redshirt.

HIGH SCHOOL: Caught 84 passes for 1,413 yards and 14 touchdowns in helping Charlotte[apos]s Independence High School to a seventh-straight North Carolina state title in 2006… hauled in six passes for 67 yards in the Shrine Bowl… caught 30 passes for 300 yards as a junior… ranked as the 18th-best prospect in the state of North Carolina by SuperPrep… rated a four-star prospect, the 32nd-best wide receiver in the nation and the 11th-best player in the state of North Carolina by Rivals.com… rated a three-star prospect and the nation[apos]s 66th-best wide receiver by Scout.com… turned down an offer from North Carolina to sign with the Gamecocks.

PERSONAL: Jason Barnes is a sport and entertainment management major.