Stephon Gilmore: From Gamecock Gridiron to NFL Glory and Academic Achievement

Stephon Gilmore's journey is a testament to his unwavering determination and commitment to excellence, both on and off the football field. From his early days as a versatile player at South Pointe High School to becoming a Super Bowl champion and NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Gilmore has consistently defied expectations and achieved remarkable success. His recent graduation from the University of South Carolina, fulfilling a promise made over a decade ago, further exemplifies his dedication to personal growth and the importance of education.

Early Years and High School Success

Stephon Stiles Gilmore was born on September 19, 1990. He attended South Pointe High School in Rock Hill, South Carolina, where he excelled in football, basketball, and track. In football, Gilmore showcased his versatility as a two-way player, starring as both a quarterback and a defensive back. As a senior, he led his team to a perfect 15-0 record and the SCHSL AAAA Division II title.

Playing quarterback on offense, Gilmore rushed for 1,331 yards and 23 touchdowns while passing for 1,771 yards with 14 scores. His outstanding performance earned him first-team all-state honors by The State and All-American recognition from Parade and EA Sports. He was also named Mr. Football for the state of South Carolina, solidifying his status as one of the most promising young athletes in the nation.

In track & field, Gilmore competed as a sprinter during his junior year in 2008, further demonstrating his athleticism and dedication to excellence in multiple sports.

College Career at the University of South Carolina

Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Gilmore was listed as the No. Gilmore graduated from South Pointe High School in December 2008 to enroll at the University of South Carolina early and participate in spring practice. It worked out, as he came out of spring as a starter at cornerback.

Impact as a True Freshman (2009)

Appearing in all 12 games for the Gamecocks, Gilmore was the rare true freshman to start at cornerback in the Southeastern Conference in 2009. He quickly made his presence felt, recording 52 tackles, five tackles for loss, two sacks, and nine passes defended. His outstanding performance earned him Freshman All-American honors from College Football News and Phil Steele.

Gilmore's versatility was also on display as he occasionally appeared on offense, with a career total of 3 attempted passes (2 complete) and 6 rushes during regular-season games. In a game against Clemson, he played quarterback in the 'Wildcat' formation, rushing for 20 yards on five carries and completing a 39-yard pass to Alshon Jeffery.

Continued Success and Recognition (2010)

In 2010, Gilmore continued to excel, earning First Team All-SEC honors and Third Team All-American honors. He led the team with 79 tackles, including 6.0 for loss and 3.0 sacks. He also showcased his playmaking ability with four opponent turnovers, including three interceptions.

One of his most memorable moments came against Furman when he intercepted a pass and returned it 80 yards for a touchdown, his first career score. He also forced a fumble with a sack on the Arkansas goal line, which was recovered by Byron McKnight and returned for a touchdown.

Memorable Moments and Lasting Impact

Gilmore cherishes his time at South Carolina, particularly the experience of playing in the SEC Championship. He also fondly remembers the Gamecocks' victories over Clemson during his tenure.

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Transition to the NFL

After a successful college career, Gilmore declared for the NFL Draft.

Pre-Draft Evaluation

Gilmore attended the NFL Scouting Combine and completed all of the combine drills, finishing second among all defensive backs in the short shuttle, tied for fourth in the 40-yard dash and the three-cone drill, finished sixth in the broad jump, and seventh in the vertical jump. On March 28, 2012, Gilmore attended South Carolina's pro day, along with Alshon Jeffery, Antonio Allen, Melvin Ingram, and 11 other prospects. He opted to only run positional drills for scouts and team representatives from all 32 NFL teams, including then-New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Gilmore was projected to be a first-round pick by NFL draft analysts.

Buffalo Bills (2012-2016)

Gilmore was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft.

2012 Season

He entered training camp projected to be the No. On September 10, 2012, Gilmore made his professional regular-season debut and earned his first career start in the Buffalo Bills' season-opener at the New York Jets and had five combined tackles (three solo) during a 48-28 loss. The following week, Gilmore set a season-high with seven solo tackles and also made three pass deflections as the Bills defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 35-17 in Week 2. In Week 4, he recorded seven combined tackles (five solo) and set a season-high with four pass deflections in the Bills 28-52 loss to the New England Patriots. On December 9, 2012, Gilmore had two solo tackles and made his first career interception on a pass by Sam Bradford to tight end Lance Kendricks and returned it for a 62-yard touchdown in the second quarter, but it was unfortunately overturned due a supposed holding penalty by defensive lineman Kyle Moore as the Bills lost 15-12 against the St. Louis Rams.

2013 Season

On January 6, 2013, the Buffalo Bills hired Syracuse head coach Doug Marrone as their new head coach. Following the departure of Terrence McGee, the No. 24 became available and was immediately selected by Gilmore, who opted to switch to No. 24 from the No. 27 he wore as a rookie. He entered training camp slated as the de facto No. 1 starting cornerback for the Bills under defensive coordinator Mike Pettine. On August 24, 2013, Gilmore recorded five combined tackles before exiting during the third quarter of the Bills' 30-17 loss against the Washington Redskins in the third preseason game after injuring his wrist. On August 26, 2013, head coach Doug Marrone announced Gilmore had fractured his wrist during the game and would require surgery. The Bills chose not to place Gilmore on injured reserve as he would have to remain inactive for a minimum of eight games and had an expected recovery time of six to eight weeks. In his absence, Leodis McKelvin was named the No. Upon his return in Week 6, Justin Rogers was immediately benched, and Gilmore began his first two games (Weeks 6-7) as the third cornerback on the depth chart behind Leodis McKelvin and Aaron Williams. In Week 9, he set a season-high with seven combined tackles (five solo) and had a pass deflection during a 23-13 loss against the Kansas City Chiefs. On December 18, 2013, Gilmore made two solo tackles, had two pass deflections, and had his first interception of the season on a pass by Mike Glennon to wide receiver Vincent Jackson during a 27-6 loss at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The following week, he had two solo tackles, a pass deflection, and helped secure the Bills' 27-20 victory at the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 15 after intercepting a pass thrown by Chad Henne to running back Jordan Todman with 3:15 left in the fourth quarter.

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2014 Season

He was inactive for the Bills' 23-20 victory at the Chicago Bears in their Week 1 season-opener due to a groin injury. On September 21, 2014, Gilmore set a season-high of six solo tackles during a 22-10 loss against the San Diego Chargers. In Week 8, Gilmore had five combined tackles (four solo), deflected a pass, and intercepted a pass attempt by Geno Smith during a 43-23 victory at the New York Jets. On December 21, 2014, Gilmore had one solo tackle before sustaining a concussion while attempting to tackle wide receiver Kenbrell Thompkins in the third quarter and hitting his head on the ground as the Bills lost 26-24 at the Oakland Raiders. He subsequently remained in concussion protocol and was inactive for the Bills' 17-9 win at the New England Patriots in Week 17. He finished the season with 46 combined tackles (38 solo), six pass deflections, and three interceptions in 14 games and 14 starts. The Buffalo Bills finished second in the AFC East during the 2014 NFL season with a 9-7 record but did not qualify for the playoffs.

2015 Season

On January 12, 2015, the Buffalo Bills hired recently fired former New York Jets' head coach Rex Ryan to be their 18th head coach. On August 28, 2015, the Bills exercised the fifth-year option on Gilmore's rookie contract, a fully-guaranteed one-year, $11.08 million contract. He entered training camp slated as the de facto No. 1 starting cornerback under new defensive coordinator Dennis Thurman. On September 13, 2015, Gilmore started in the Buffalo Bills' home-opener against the Indianapolis Colts and recorded a season-high six solo tackles and set a season-high with four pass deflections during a 27-14 victory. On October 11, 2015, he made one solo tackle, tied his season-high of four pass deflections, and sealed a 14-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans with a fourth-quarter interception on a pass by Marcus Mariota to wide receiver Kendall Wright with 1:41 remaining.

2016 Season

He returned as the No. 1 starting cornerback in 2016 and remained paired together with Ronald Darby. In Week 2, he set a season-high with six solo tackles during a 37-31 loss to the New York Jets. He finished the 2016 NFL season with 48 combined tackles (42 solo), 12 pass deflections, and set a career-high with five interceptions in 15 games and 15 starts. His five interceptions were the most by a Bills' player since Jairus Byrd intercepted five passes in 2012. On January 23, 2017, the Buffalo Bills announced that Gilmore was voted to the 2017 Pro Bowl.

New England Patriots (2017-2021)

On January 11, 2017, the Buffalo Bills hired Carolina Panthers' defensive coordinator Sean McDermott as the 19th head coach in franchise history. Gilmore entered free agency for the first time in his career after not receiving a contract offer from the Bills.

2017 Season

He entered training camp as a slated to be a starting cornerback under defensive coordinator Matt Patricia following the departure of Logan Ryan. Head coach Bill Belichick named Gilmore the No. In Week 3, he had four solo tackles, one pass deflection, and had his first interception with the Patriots, on a pass thrown by Deshaun Watson to wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins during a narrow 36-33 victory against the Houston Texans. On October 5, 2017, Gilmore had five solo tackles before exiting during the second quarter of a 19-14 win at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after sustaining a concussion following an accidental helmet-to-helmet collision with wide receiver Mike Evans. He subsequently remained inactive in concussion protocol for the next three games (Weeks 6-8). In Week 15, Gilmore set a season-high of eight solo tackles and broke up a pass during a 27-24 victory at the Pittsburgh Steelers. The New England Patriots finished atop the AFC East with a 13-3 record during the 2017 NFL season and clinched a playoff berth as well as a first-round bye. On January 13, 2018, Gilmore started in his first career playoff game and made one tackle and two pass deflections during a 35-14 victory against the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Divisional round.

2018 Season

Head coach Bill Belichick took over defensive coordinator duties after Matt Patricia departed to become the head coach of the Detroit Lions. Throughout training camp, Gilmore was slated as the de facto No. 1 starting cornerback following the departure of Malcolm Butler. He began the season as a starting cornerback, alongside Eric Rowe, and led a young cornerback group that included Jonathan Jones and rookies Duke Dawson, Keion Crossen, and J. C. On September 9, 2018, Gilmore started in the New England Patriots' home-opener against the Houston Texans and had a season-high eight combined tackles (seven solo), two pass deflections, and intercepted a pass by Deshaun Watson to wide receiver Vyncint Smith during their 27-20 victory. In Week 9 against the Green Bay Packers, he held Packers star receiver Davante Adams to two catches for 15 yards on four targets and recovered an Aaron Jones fumble early in the fourth quarter that led to the Patriots scoring 14 unanswered points in their 31-17 win. In Week 10, he had four solo tackles, a forced fumble, and had his first career sack on Marcus Mariota for a seven-yard loss during a 34-10 loss at the Tennessee Titans. On November 25, 2018, Gilmore had one tackle, a season-high three pass deflections, and had an interception on a pass attempt by Josh McCown to wide receiver Robby Anderson during a 27-13 victory at the New York Jets. He started all 16 games for the first time since his rookie season and had a total of 45 combined tackles (40 solo), a career-high 20 pass deflections, two interceptions, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, and one sack. His 20 passes defensed led the entite league in 2018 and Gilmore was named to the 2019 Pro Bowl, earning Pro Bowl honors for the second time in his career. The New England Patriots finished the 2018 NFL season second in their division with a record of 11-5 to clinch a playoff berth and first-round bye.

2019 Season: Defensive Player of the Year

He returned to training camp as the Patriots' de facto No. 1 starting cornerback and led a young group of corners that included rookies Joejuan Williams and Ken Webster, Jonathan Jones, J. C. Jackson, and Duke Dawson. Head coach Bill Belichick named him the No. On September 15, 2019, Gilmore made two tackles, three pass deflections, and scored his first career touchdown on a pick-six after intercepting a pass by former teammate Ryan Fitzpatrick to wide receiver DeVante Parker and returned it for a 54-yard touchdown during a 43-0 win at the Miami Dolphins. In Week 6, he had three combined tackles (two solo), set a career-high with five pass deflections, and had a highlight toe-tapping sideline interception off of a pass by Daniel Jones to fullback Rhett Ellison as the Patriots defeated the New York Giants 35-14. He allowed a 0.0 passer rating when targeted during the game. After the game, former Patriots' cornerback Darrelle Revis stated that Gilmore is "by far the best corner in the league right now." The following week, Gilmore made one pass deflection and had his second consecutive game with an interception after picking off a pass by Sam Darnold to Robby Anderson during a 33-0 victory at the New York Jets. His performance throughout the month of October earned him AFC Defensive Player of the Month. In Week 12, he recorded five combined tackles (four solo), two pass deflections, and set a new career-high with his fourth interception of the season after picking off a pass by Dak Prescott to wide receiver Amari Cooper on the first offensive play of the game as the Patriots defeated the Dallas Cowboys 13-9. On December 15, 2019, Gilmore had two solo tackles, four pass deflections, two interceptions, and returned one for a touchdown during a 34-13 victory at the Cincinnati Bengals. His pick-six occurred on an interception by Andy Dalton to wide receiver Tyler Boyd and returned it for a 65-yard touchdown. Gilmore did not allow a touchdown reception until Week 16 when he allowed a 53-yard touchdown reception by Bills' wide receiver John Brown, although the Patriots still defeated the Buffalo Bills 24-17. In Week 17, he set a season-high with eight combined tackles (five solo), but had his worst performance of the season, allowing eight receptions for 137 receiving yards by DeVante Parker. He received an overall grade of 82.9 from Pro Football Focus in 2019 and was awarded the Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award in recognition of his excellent season, becoming the first member of the New England Patriots to win the award in their 50-year span.

2020 Season

He returned as the No. 1 starting cornerback in his third season under Bill Belichick acting as defensive coordinator. He was named a starting cornerback to begin the season and played alongside Jason McCourty, Jonathan Jones, and J. C. On September 13, 2020, he started in the New England Patriots' home-opener against the Miami Dolphins and had five combined tackles (four solo), a pass deflection, and had his first and only interception of the season on a pass by Ryan Fitzpatrick to wide receiver Preston Williams during their 21-11 victory. On October 7, 2020, Gilmore tested positive for COVID-19 and was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team.

Carolina Panthers (2021)

Indianapolis Colts (2022)

Dallas Cowboys (2023)

Academic Achievement and Degree Completion

Throughout his illustrious 13-season NFL career, Stephon Gilmore became known as a man of few words and lockdown defense. However, the five-time Pro Bowler made a loud statement this week that had nothing to do with interceptions or Super Bowl rings. On Monday, Gilmore walked across the stage at the University of South Carolina’s December commencement, officially earning his bachelor's degree in liberal studies.

At 35 years old, Gilmore was one of 31 current and former Gamecock student-athletes to receive their diplomas during the ceremony held at Colonial Life Arena. For the Rock Hill, South Carolina, native, the milestone marks the fulfillment of a promise made more than a decade ago, when he left campus early to pursue his professional goals.

Gilmore’s path to the stage was paved by the university’s Degree Completion Program and Palmetto College, which provide former athletes with the resources and academic support needed to complete their coursework. Despite the demands of an elite football career-which included a 2019 NFL Defensive Player of the Year award and a championship with the New England Patriots-Gilmore remained quietly determined to cross the academic finish line.

The former first-round pick noted that a primary motivation for returning to school was his family. As a father of three, Gilmore expressed that it was vital for his children to see him prioritize education, proving that success on the field does not replace the value of a degree. He completed much of his remaining coursework online over the last two years, demonstrating the same discipline that made him a premier cornerback in the league.

The Degree Completion Program

The Degree Completion Program is for student-athletes who leave the university in good academic standing to pursue a professional career or did not complete their degree due to personal circumstances. The program allows them to apply to be readmitted to come back to campus or take online courses to finish their degree while eligible to receive funding for room, board, books, and tuition. They also have access to all of the resources offered to current student-athletes, such as tutors, laptops, and use of the Dodie Anderson Academic Enrichment Center.

Maria Hickman, South Carolina Executive Associate Athletics Director, praised Gilmore's commitment, stating, “When Stephon left school early, he seized the chance to pursue his NFL dream. Seeing him return to finish what he started in the classroom is truly inspiring."

Gilmore acknowledged the support he received from the university, saying, “I was drafted early and had a chance to live out my dream and play in the NFL, so it was great to have a way to come back and get my degree. It takes some pressure off you." He specifically thanked Maria Hickman for her assistance, noting that she had been a great help to him, answering his calls and texts even before he started taking classes.

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