UNC recruitment led WR Pharoh Cooper to sign with South Carolina

Published Aug. 27, 2015 11:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

The Gamecocks and their star Heisman-hopeful receiver Pharoh Cooper will open the season against North Carolina in one week. If not for one premature invitation to a basketball game, Cooper would likely be playing for the Tar Heels in the opener.

Cooper's high school coach, Jim Bob Bryant, went so far as to call UNC Cooper's dream school. Being a North Carolina native, suiting up in Carolina blue would have been a dream come true for the All-American receiver.

So what happened? According to The State, the trouble started when an assistant in Chapel Hill invited Cooper and a teammate to attend the UNC-Duke basketball game on Carolina's campus.

“That’s a big deal. I called the kids and told them and they are all jacked up and putting it on Twitter and Facebook,” Bryant said. “They would have probably committed to North Carolina that day.”

The assistant coach called back the next day and said they couldn't get tickets for Cooper or the teammate, instead giving them to other prospects. Cooper's trust could not be rebuilt after that incident.

“I didn’t have a good feel with their coaching staff, and I turned away from them,” Pharoh Cooper said. “They kind of did some things I didn’t like. I kind of take that game personally.

“I’m ready for that game.”

If Cooper goes off in the opener, you now know why.

(h/t The State)