Can USC's Jeffery top breakout freshman season?

COLUMBIA -- Steve Spurrier Jr., like his old man, isn't a huge fan of doing interviews. South Carolina's wide receivers coach will stop for you, but begrudgingly. Again, like his dad, he can't seem to stand still.

So it's really something to see him beam when he's asked about sophomore receiver Alshon Jeffery.

Here are two different accounts from this summer, nearly a month apart. Each time, Spurrier Jr. starts and ends in the same gushing way.

"Alshon's really kind of a neat guy," Spurrier Jr. said in late July. "He really works hard. He's really more intelligent than you may give him credit for. He's got kind of a quiet expression and a calm look on his face. But he picks up a lot. He's always listening. He listens well. He really understands a lot. And he really wants to do well.

"I'm excited. I want to let him go and see what he can do."

And here's mid-August.

"Alshon, he's really kind of a neat guy," Spurrier Jr. said. "He likes to do a little extra. … He doesn't have a ton of expression, but he's a really hard worker. He really wants to be a good player. He's a lot of fun to work with."

Spurrier Jr. has had good ones at USC, as everyone knows. Kenny McKinley, whom Junior hasn't stopped talking about, set school records for career receiving yards and consecutive games. For two seasons, McKinley shared a field with Sidney Rice, who is blossoming with the NFL's Minnesota Vikings.

Jeffery is on the road to that company. He's not there, but he took some big steps as a freshman.

Jeffery, from nearby St. Matthews, had just five catches in the team's first five games last season, but a late touchdown against South Carolina State opened the coaches' eyes. They figured they would give him a shot the following week against Kentucky.

The Wildcats are still wishing they hadn't.

Jeffery caught seven passes for 138 yards and three touchdowns.

He went on to catch 41 passes for 702 yards and five scores in the Gamecocks' final eight games, earning freshman All-America honors.

What's on tap for the encore? Good luck getting it out of Jeffery. He's one of the quietest players on the team.

"I don't have any individual goals," Jeffery said. "My goals are the same as the team's, to win an SEC championship and a national championship."

Jeffery has regularly worked after practice with Spurrier Jr. He said that's a habit he picked up in high school, at Calhoun County.

Additionally, the weight program has done Jeffery well. He was a basketball player in high school, so he didn't work out a whole lot during the football offseason. He arrived a month late last season, so he missed a lot of strength work before his freshman season.

After a year in the weight room, he's bigger and stronger.

He was listed at 6-3 and 217 pounds a year ago. He's 6-4 and 237 pounds now.

That can only help him in 2010.

"He's a tough, smart, persistent guy who wants to be great," Spurrier Jr. said. "He's set to have a pretty good year. I'm looking forward to watching him get after it."

And it's not just Jeffery. South Carolina's receiving corps does appear improved, with the additions of freshmen Ace Sanders and Nick Jones.

"They're pretty sneaky. People might sleep on them," Jeffery said. "They're doing everything great."

Fans are clamoring for Jeffery and 6-5 sophomore Tori Gurley on the field at the same time, but Spurrier Jr. said that's an overrated concept. Height is nice and all, but sometimes you need guys like Sanders (5-6) and Jones (5-8), who can get open in the middle of the field.

"There's benefits to height, but there's also some things that aren't so great about being tall," Spurrier Jr. said. "In college, I'm not sold on what height your players have to be to be good. I think we have five guys over 6-3. Well, all of those guys won't be on the field at the same time, I can tell you that."

Spurrier Jr. has said a group of six receivers will work in the rotation.

Look for junior Jason Barnes, sophomore D.L. Moore and redshirt freshman DeMario Bennett to round out the group.

Reach Travis Haney at thaney@postandcourier.com, check out the Gamecocks blog at postandcourier.com/blogs/gamecocks and follow him on Twitter (@gamecocksblog).