Jake Bentley to South Carolina: Gamecocks Land 4-Star QB Prospect

South Carolina bolstered its offensive future Thursday when quarterback Jake Bentley committed to its 2017 recruiting class.

Bentley shared his decision on Twitter:

The 6'4", 215-pound signal-caller is a 4-star prospect, per 247Sports' composite rankings, and he's the No. 104 overall player, the No. 6 pro-style quarterback and the No. 4 player from the state of Alabama in the 2017 class.

A number of the nation's top programs recruited Bentley throughout the process, including Auburn, South Carolina, Clemson, Stanford, Georgia and Miami.

One of the more intriguing twists during Bentley's recruitment was the fact that South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp hired the prospect's father to join the Gamecocks coaching staff, as Rusty Mansell of 247Sports noted in December.

Tom VanHaaren of ESPN.com passed along word in December that Bentley's top two schools at the time were Georgia and Stanford, although Miami and South Carolina were in the mix. South Carolina clearly made up some ground.

Phil Kornblut of the State shared quotes from Bentley regarding some of his favorites in December:

"

It feels great. Coach Muschamp told me that he was going to personally recruit me hard and never use my dad to try to persuade me. That made me feel great because it shows he wants me for me. I'm very excited about it and excited to see how it goes moving forward. ...

Stanford is still the favorite but I am very excited to see how Coach Muschamp develops the USC program. USC is for sure one of the schools at the top of the list.

"

There is a reason so many programs were interested in the talented signal-caller. Per Drew Champlin of AL.com, Bentley's high school coach at Opelika in Alabama, Brian Blackmon, said: "Jake's a great player, and the sky is the limit for him. I think he is the best 2017 quarterback in the country. If there's one better as a true passer and pro-style quarterback, I'd love to see him. He'd have to be a really good player."

According to Champlin, Bentley threw for 2,834 yards and 28 touchdowns while adding 340 yards and four scores on the ground as a junior.

From a scouting report standpoint, it is easy to fall in love with Bentley's potential. He brings many of the prototypical traits coaches look for in a pro-style quarterback, including height, arm strength and pocket poise. He can fling the ball downfield, see over the oncoming blitzers, and keep the offense rolling with accurate intermediate and short passes.

While he is largely a pro-style passer, Bentley boasts enough athleticism to make things happen with his legs when the pocket collapses. His rushing yards as a junior are a testament to that, although he also keeps plays alive with his feet and allows his receivers additional time to break free.

Those are the types of plays that prove to be the difference in many collegiate games, especially at the level Bentley will be playing. South Carolina may have its quarterback of the future thanks to Thursday's recruiting success.