Updated 1:09 a.m. Dec. 24.
Another Penn State position coach is headed south this winter.
Deion Barnes is headed to South Carolina after six season coaching with the Nittany Lions, as first reported by ESPN’s Pete Thamel and later confirmed by South Carolina on Tuesday night. Barnes, a former Penn State defensive end, will serve as the defensive ends and outside linebackers coach for the Gamecocks.
Barnes’ entire coaching career to this point has been in Happy Valley, with three seasons as graduate assistant and three as the defensive line coach following the end of his playing career, which included NFL stints with the New York Jets and Kansas City Chiefs.
Considered one of the top position coaches on staff, Barnes helped develop eight NFL draft picks since he started working with the defensive line in 2020, including seven defensive ends, the most in college football during that span. Notable draft selections during his tenure include first-rounders Micah Parsons, Chop Robinson and Abdul Carter and second-rounders Yetur Gross-Matos and Arnold Ebiketie. Defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton and defensive tackle Zane Durant will likely join that group in the spring.
Barnes will join former Penn State running backs coach Stan Drayton, who was hired at South Carolina earlier this month after one season with the Nittany Lions. Drayton will coach Penn State in the Pinstripe Bowl against Clemson, but it’s unclear whether Barnes will remain with the team.
Minutes after the Barnes news broke, South Carolina star edge rusher Dylan Stewart announced he will return to the Gamecocks for his junior season in 2026 and not enter the transfer portal.
