I did some more research on this issue and found out that the admissions stats that @lookingforward is citing is based on a 5.0 scale not a 4.0 scale. The system that U of South Carolina uses to develop their Weight Core GPA will likely result in his GPA getting closer to the low end of the mid range of admitted students. Additionally Naviance data from the last three years from his HS showed that 7 out of 8 students with an SAT higher than 1200 that also had an unweighted GPA below 3.0 were admitted. He has four safety schools but U of South Carolina, JMU and MSU are his top choices, all three of these schools are reaches but not “out of this world” reaches. I’m keen on all three and think they all have solid academic reputations. Thanks for all the feedback!