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Meechie Johnson's college career hasn't been so much a rollercoaster as it has been a game of ping-pong. On Tuesday, the senior announced he would return to South Carolina to seek a sixth year of basketball eligibility.
Johnson began his career at Ohio State where he played two seasons before transferring to South Carolina. After two years with the Gamecocks, he returned to Ohio State, where he spent last season. Now, he's completing the circle, ping-ponging back to Columbia.
The guard made his announcement via X, posting a video of himself playing for the Gamecocks the last time around. The words “I'm back” appear on the screen at the end.
But while Johnson is hoping to return to the South Carolina program in the fall, he will need a waiver to play a sixth season. Johnson was a freshman in 2020-21, and like everyone who played that year, was granted a fifth year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That was supposed to be this past season, but Johnson played only 10 games, leaving the team for personal reasons on December 10.
He averaged 9.1 points per game and shot 35.7% from three before he stepped away from the Buckeyes.
Meechie Johnson fills an immediate need for South Carolina men's basketball
South Carolina followed up a remarkable second year of the Lamont Paris era (program-record 26 wins and a 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament) with a brutal 12-20 season in 2024-25. That included 13 consecutive losses to begin SEC play and a first-round exit in the SEC Tournament.
The Gamecocks will lose guards Jacobi Wright and Jamarii Thomas to graduation after the pair combined to average 20.9 points and 5.3 assists per game. In Johnson's final season at South Carolina, he posted 14.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per contest. He was also an all-SEC player and started every game but one for the Gamecocks.
When Johnson left South Carolina last time, Paris made it clear there were no hard feelings.
“There’s no such thing as a surprise when it comes to a roster,” Paris said last July. “No ill will whatsoever. I love the kid. I love his dad. I’ve gotten text messages from both of them. … They’re gonna be family forever. When he gets married, he’s gonna invite me to his wedding and I’m gonna go to it. It’s just a decision he made.”
South Carolina also landed North Dakota standout Treysen Eaglestaff in the portal after Eaglestaff scored 51 in a Summit League tournament game and dropped 40 on Alabama this season.
