Everything From South Carolina RB Rahsul Faison In Media Availability Session

Rahsul Faison received a clearance from the NCAA earlier this week ahead of the Gamecocks matchup against Virginia Tech on Sunday. It was a major boost to the running back room and how special they can be on Sunday. In his media availability session, Faison reacted to being reinstated, his preparation for the game against the Hokies, and a little bit about his running style. Here is everything he had to say.

On the moment, he found he was cleared… 

“Yeah, I was just at home just resting and then Coach Beamer gave me a call, let me know that I'm all cleared up, and it was just a great conversation.”

On whether he called his mom immediately when he found out the news…

“Yeah, I called her immediately. She was asleep, though, she was asleep for like three hours, then she woke up to all the news.”

On Senior Associate AD Erin Abbey playing a big role in getting him cleared…

“Yeah, she played a major role. Once they took things over in compliance, I feel like things started moving a lot quicker with the decision, and I'm just grateful and thankful that they were able to help me out and just be there for me.”

On how he would sum up the previous eight months….

“Yeah, it was a lot of ups and downs for sure, but for the most part I was in good spirits through it all because I, you know, I've been here with my teammates, my coaches, Coach Beamer, Coach Black, and then obviously my family, they played a major part. So, people around me just kept me high, and then I've been through worse. I had faith that it would happen and the NCAA would do the right thing. So, I'm just blessed that they granted me an extra year.”

On how he celebrated the news….

“I didn't really celebrate at all. I was just like, it's time to go now. Like we got a game in a couple of days, so I just kept preparing like I've been doing.”

On how his career helped prepare him for this type of situation…

“Yeah, I just feel like everything I've been through, not just college, but my whole life, everything just prepared me for this moment. So, I feel like I'm ready for everything that's about to happen.”

On how he would describe his game and running style….

“I would say I'm experienced now from, you know, playing at Utah State and being able to take the main role last year. I know we got a lot of young guys, so just being like a good leader to the young guys and just, you know, pushing everybody around me to be better, and they do the same thing to me.”

On if the NCAA or compliance asked him questions that he was unsure about…

“I know what happened throughout my journey. Like once they asked me, I answered to the best of my ability, of course. I was honest and gave them the truth of what happened each year.”

On what that first catch or carry would feel like for South Carolina…

Not really. I mean, yeah, I always play the game in my head for sure. So, I got a vision of how it's going to go. So, hopefully it goes that way.”

On if he finds himself getting too far ahead, unsure of the decision that would be made…

“I just had in my head that I was playing. So, like if things would have gone left, then I would have just had to deal with that if that would have happened.”

On if any part of him likes that people know his story…

“Yeah, it's nice that people got to know my story and a little bit and got to understand my situation and why I feel like I deserve this extra year, if you want to call it. But yeah, it's definitely just a blessing. It's all a blessing.”

On what he has learned throughout the whole process.

“I learned a lot. I just learned honestly to be patient. I learned to stay humble, so no one can humble you. Don't like to get ahead of myself and things like that. So, I just learned a lot about myself and my character. I was trying to be the best person I could be to like my teammates, be the best like player I could be for my coaches, and things like that, and just learn and just focus on the positive things that was going on.”

On if there were any guys he leaned on during the tough part of the process…

“My running back room and coach Black just being in there with them and just preparing for this Sunday. I just leaned on them, and I just talked to them about it if I talk to anyone about it. But yeah, that's pretty much it.”

On what to expect from the running back room on Sunday…

We’ll be prepared for sure. Coach Black, you know, he does a great job on coaching us and getting us ready and making sure that we know what we're doing when we're out there, so we can play fast. We're going to be playing fast, and we'll be prepared and hopefully know what's going on.”

On his reaction to the Nike and South Carolina partnership…

“I was just happy for them. They were happy with the decision. So, if they're happy, I'm happy.”