Quarterback, running back strong areas for team
South Carolina is once again gearing up for a season full of high expectations. After finishing last year in the top 10, there is nothing to suggest that the team can’t do the same this season. Sure, they lost tailback Marcus Lattimore for good, but the Gamecocks have had to make do without him for portions of the last two seasons. In addition, the defense took a hit with the loss of Devin Taylor, DeVonte Holloman and Shaq Wilson, but coach Steve Spurrier and company have done a good job over the last few years developing depth in all of the defensive positions. With that said, here are some “strengths” of the 2013 team and five “weaknesses.”
1. Kicking game
There is a lot of uncertainty both in who will be the placekicker and in who will be the kickoff specialist after the departure of Adam Yates, last year’s kicker who made 11 field goals in 17 attempts and all 49 of his point after attempts. As the team’s statistics show, Spurrier has traditionally been reluctant to send his kicker onto the field. But it is still one of the most important positions on the team. The Gamecocks will likely be in a lot of close games this year, and having a reliable kicker would keep the coaching staff’s heart rates down. Still, there is not a reliable option going into the season opener. As it appears now, walk-on freshman Elliot Fry will be the placekicker against North Carolina. This is somewhat disheartening, because redshirt freshman Nick St. Germain, who was the eighth-best kicker in the nation coming out of high school, according to ESPN, was offered a scholarship with the hopes that he could take over. As for who will be kickoff specialist, Germain, Fry and sophomore Landon Ard are still competing for the spot. The kicking game will continue to be a question mark as the team heads into the season.
2. Linebackers/spurs
It’s tough to call this a weakness, because there is such talent at both the spur and linebacker positions. But it is unproven talent, and that is why the squad finds itself in this category. The Gamecocks last season lost five senior linebackers who had been the anchor of the South Carolina defense for the last three to four years. Now, Marcquis Roberts, Kaiwan Lewis and Sharrod Golightly will look to replace that production. One good thing about the current situation is that Golightly, Lewis and Roberts all got to sit and learn from DeVonte Holloman, Shaq Wilson and company last year. The Gamecocks hope they will carry that knowledge into this season. In addition, there are some impressive freshmen that could eventually take away a starting spot at linebacker or spur. Linebackers coach Kirk Botkin has raved about the play of Skai Moore, Jonathon Walton and Larenz Bryant, all of whom could make a play for the weakside linebacker spot. We’ll just have to wait and see how these young linebackers handle the pressures of real-game situations.
3.Wide receiver
Ever since the departure of Alshon Jeffrey and Tori Gurley, South Carolina has struggled to find a consistent 1-2 wide receiver combo. Ace Sanders and Bruce Ellington did a nice job last year, but Sanders bolted early for the NFL. Now, Ellington, who also is a point guard on the basketball team, will be the leading returning receiver. However, in the most recent depth chart, the junior is listed behind Damiere Byrd at one of the receiver positions. Starting in the other two spots are sophomore Shaq Roland and junior Nick Jones. Roland came into his freshman season as a highly touted in-state recruit, but only recorded five catches and one touchdown his first year. He will need to greatly improve on that if South Carolina is to avoid becoming one-dimensional. Meanwhile, Jones has shown some flashes during his time with the Gamecocks. The former Byrnes High School player only had 12 catches last season, but finished with a bang after recording a career-high 78 yards against Michigan in the Outback Bowl. Redshirt sophomore Shamier Jeffrey, Alshon’s younger brother, reportedly improved greatly during his redshirt year and over the offseason and is listed as a backup to Roland.
4. Depth of offensive line
While South Carolina will return four players on the offensive line who have previous starting experience, there is not much behind them. In addition, the Gamecocks have to replace center T.J. Johnson, who started every game in his four-year career. Redshirt freshman Cody Waldrop is projected to take over and has the potential to be in the position for a while. Waldrop was named the Most Improved Freshman on offense in the spring. Corey Robinson, A.J. Cann, Ronald Patrick and Brandon Shell return to surround Waldrop. But if one of the five starters were to go down, there is one backup between all five positions who has previous playing experience. That player is sophomore Will Sport, who played in 12 games last year on special teams. Because the offensive line is such an injury-prone position, a lack of depth there going into the season is concerning.
5. Punt Returner
Ace Sanders turned himself into a highlight machine at this spot last year, returning two punts for touchdowns and averaging a conference-best 15.3 yards per return. Sanders also returned a punt for a touchdown in the 2011 season opener against East Carolina, which was the team’s first punt-return touchdown since 2003. But now that Sanders is gone, who is going to take over? Victor Hampton is slated to be both the kick and punt returner this season, but it is unlikely he will be able to provide the explosiveness that Sanders did in the punt return game. Sanders’s 70-yard punt return touchdown against Georgia sparked the Gamecocks’ blowout, and without it, that could have possibly been a much different game.
1. Quarterback
Most coaches would love to have the luxury of choosing between two quarterbacks who have proven they can compete at the Southeastern Conference level. Spurrier has that luxury, but it looks like rather than choosing between Connor Shaw or Dylan Thompson, he will play both. Spurrier has historically been OK with using two quarterbacks, and this is probably the first year at South Carolina he has had two signal-callers as good as Shaw and Thompson. In last season’s Outback Bowl win over Michigan, Shaw threw for 224 yards and two touchdowns, while Thompson threw for 117 yards and two touchdowns. Spurrier hopes that success will carry into the season, and if one struggles, he can just switch over to the other. Shaw will get the start against the Tar Heels. On top of the current situation, the future looks bright at the position, as highly recruited freshman Connor Mitch awaits his turn after Shaw and Thompson are gone.
2. Runningback
Even though Lattimore was a workhorse the last three seasons and is now gone, there are plenty of options to replace him. Because of Lattimore’s injuries, players like Brandon Wilds and Mike Davis were able to get valuable playing time. Wilds made the most of his chances, recording three 100-yard games in five career starts. The sophomore took a redshirt last year because of an injury, opening the door for Davis near the end of the season when Lattimore went down with his second knee injury. The sophomore rushed for 275 yards as a freshman and averaged more than five yards per carry. In addition to that pair, redshirt sophomore Shon Carson and true freshman David Williams will add some depth to the rotation.
3. Defensive Line
Any team that has Jadeveon Clowney has a strength in its defensive line. The junior wrecked offenses last season and has spent the summer winning an ESPY award and gracing magazine covers. Because of all the attention Clowney has received, the rest of his teammates have flown under the radar. Someone to look out for is senior defensive end Chaz Sutton, who is playing on the other side of Clowney. Sutton tallied six sacks and 25 tackles in 13 games last season while playing behind Devin Taylor. There is plenty of depth at the defensive tackle spots, where juniors Kelcy Quarles and J.T. Surratt return to clog up the middle. Behind them are sophomores Gerald Dixon Jr., Deon Green and Phillip Dukes, who all have experience in the system. In addition, true freshman Kelsey Griffin is fighting for playing time at the tackle spot, so depth on the defensive line should not be an issue.
4. Defensive Back
South Carolina will return two corners who started the majority of the season last year. Junior Victor Hampton made all 13 starts at defensive back last season and returns as the Gamecocks’ best cover corner. On the other side of the field, Jimmy Legree returns after splitting time with Akeem Auguste last year. There isn’t too much experience behind them, but the coaching staff is confident that sophomore Ahmad Christian can back up both Legree and Hampton. This strength is important for South Carolina because of its lack of experience up the middle at the linebacker and spur positions. Hampton and Legree’s leadership should help offset that.
5. Coaching staff
Spurrier is one of the greats of this generation of coaches and has helped build South Carolina into a consistently top-10 program. With his experience, the Gamecocks should be able to handle anything that’s thrown at them. In addition, offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator Shawn Elliott is an important part of the coaching staff. Elliott chose to stay with the team after other teams expressed interest in his services. While South Carolina did lose longtime defensive line coach Brad Lawing to the Florida Gators, they replaced him with Deke Adams, who coached a productive defensive line at North Carolina. In addition, Grady Brown (secondary), Kirk Botkin (linebackers/spurs), Everette Sands (runningbacks) and Joe Robinson all now have a year of experience under their belts with the Gamecocks.
Source: Gamecocksonline