Spurrier will do ‘Whatever it takes to win the game’
Senior Connor Shaw is the winningest quarterback in South Carolina history, with 17 wins to 3 losses as a starter, but that does not mean his starting job is safe from junior Dylan Thompson.
“They’ve done enough things where they both deserve to play,” quarterbacks coach G.A. Mangus said. “So we’ll see how all that goes.”
While Mangus and coach Steve Spurrier have both confirmed throughout the preseason that Shaw will be the starter for the Gamecocks, they’ve also made it clear that Thompson will get opportunities.
The two have shown they can effectively split playing time, most notably in South Carolina’s Outback Bowl win over Michigan, a game in which Shaw threw for 224 yards and Thompson tallied 117, while both tossed two touchdowns apiece.
“If Connor gets nicked up or gets the wind knocked out of him or whatever, then Dylan, he’s ready to go play,” Spurrier said. “It worked out almost perfectly in the Outback Bowl.”
Both Gamecock signal-callers broke the 1,000-yard passing mark in 2012, as Shaw finished the year with 1,956 yards and Thompson threw for 1,027.
Even though Shaw will likely be splitting time with Thompson, he still managed to find his way onto the 2013 Manning Award watch list, chosen based on ESPN’s 2012 total quarterback rating.
“Connor is an excellent player,” Spurrier said. “He’s sort of a throwback to the quarterbacks that can run and pass and run over people if he has to.”
Though he’s drawn praise from his coaches and a faction of the national media, Shaw said he won’t rest on his winning record as the Gamecocks’ quarterback.
“It is what it is right now. I can’t really think about it until my career is over with,” Shaw said. “Like I’ve said before, all I do is try to win.”
The two South Carolina field generals have been pegged as polar opposites since Thompson burst onto the scene last year. Shaw has made a name for himself as a threat to run, becoming just the second Gamecock quarterback to rush for 1,000 yards and pass for 3,000 in a career. Thompson is known as a more traditional pocket passer.
However, it’s their personality differences that have truly given birth to the comparison.
“When [Shaw] came in, he could have been a great fit at Fort Jackson — just serious and never smiled — always just studying and doing his thing,” Thompson said. “I try to just have fun out here.”
Despite their differences, Thompson and Shaw share a common competitive spirit that has not gone unnoticed by Mangus.
“The bottom line is they’re both very, very serious about becoming good quarterbacks,” Mangus said. “Their personalities are great, they get along great, but they’re all business when it comes to the game of football.”
South Carolina will carry three other quarterbacks on its roster — redshirt freshmen Brendan Nosovitch and Perry Orth and freshman Connor Mitch, who is expected to redshirt this year.
Nosovitch looks to be USC’s third option at quarterback, while Orth will occupy the fourth-string spot on the depth chart.
With Shaw ready to take the reins of a Gamecock football team that received the program’s highest ever preseason ranking — No. 6 in the Associated Press poll — and Thompson waiting in the wings for his chance to run the offense, Spurrier insists there is no controversy at the quarterback position entering the 2013 season.
“We’re just coming to the ballpark here Thursday night with all of our players ready to play,” Spurrier said. “Whatever it takes to try to win the game, we’ve got to use all of it, simple as that.”