COLUMBIA — All signs point toward Texas Tech slugger Connor Shouse playing baseball for South Carolina next year. The Seattle Mariners picked Shouse in the final round of the Major League Baseball draft, four spots from the conclusion, but said then that they didn’t expect to sign him.

That hasn’t changed. The Mariners have signed their other 18 draftees and seem prepared to be satisfied with them. Plus, the bonus pool money that Seattle would have to dip into to get Shouse also seems to be diminished enough so that he wouldn’t accept whatever financial offer the team could make.

But there is still a question mark. Shouse has until 5 p.m. on Monday to officially say whether he’s a pro or a Gamecock, and anything could still happen. USC had a commitment from pitcher Ethan Sutton, a transfer from USF drafted in the 16th round by the L.A. Dodgers, who also seemed likely to come to school.

That chance disappeared late Saturday night when Sutton signed with the Dodgers. 

Gamecock commitments and MLB draftees Will Whelan, Miguel Hugas and Tyler Pitzer all signed shortly after the draft, which was expected. Pitcher Amp Phillips, a weekend starter last season, also was expected to sign and did.

Jake McCoy and Alex Philpott, roster members last season, had already expressed their intent to enter the transfer portal before the draft. McCoy was picked but has said he will follow through with his intention to pitch at Tennessee next year, while Philpott, who was committed to Florida State, accepted his draft slot and will go pro.

That leaves only Shouse; if he comes to school, he is an immediate third-in-the-order bat and a ready-made third baseman, although he can play elsewhere. Again, it looks good for him to be on the roster in the spring.

But.

There’s always the but.

Gavin Floyd was committed to South Carolina but was picked fourth by Philadelphia in the 2001 draft. Everybody figured he was gone, because who wouldn’t be at that spot in the draft?

Yet on Aug. 22, Floyd was in his room in Columbia with his brother Michael, a returning outfielder for the Gamecocks who had also been drafted by the Phillies. He was less than 10 hours away from reporting to an 8 a.m. orientation at USC and once he walked through that classroom door, he would be a Gamecock for at least the next three seasons.

He never made it. On Aug. 23, he was on his way to Philadelphia after the Phillies called and offered him 4.2 million really good reasons not to go to college. His brother left, too.

That 2002 USC team notched the program’s first College World Series appearance since 1985 the following spring, losing the championship game to Texas. The what-might-have-been Gamecock thought was, “Man, if Floyd had been pitching for that team … ” although Steven Bondurant, Gary Bell and David Marchbanks did just fine as a weekend rotation, and freshman Aaron Rawl grew up in a hurry with two games started in Omaha, including the last.

Floyd had a solid pro career, mostly becoming known as a guy who spun two near no-hitters within a month of each other in 2009. No one begrudged him the decision to accept that kind of money to bypass college, but how close he came to being in Columbia … 

Shouse doesn’t have to wait for class to begin. The Gamecocks just have to wait for 5 p.m. to pencil him in for next year.