Carson to see more carries in Wilds’ absence
South Carolina’s dynamic duo of sophomore running backs Mike Davis and Brandon Wilds took a hit on Saturday after Wilds dislocated his elbow in the third quarter.
Head coach Steve Spurrier said Wilds is expected to miss two to three weeks. The injury occurred on a third-and-seven where Wilds actually picked up the first down off a running play but fumbled. The injury seemed to happen after the fumble, when a Central Florida defender nailed Wilds as the running back was reaching for the loose ball. The Knights recovered the ball at the USC 47-yard line, but were unable to cash in, going three-and-out.
Redshirt sophomore Shon Carson will replace Wilds as the second-string halfback in his absence. Carson only had one carry on Saturday for no gain, but he will now likely get more touches.
Third Down Offense
The Knights held their first three opponents of the season to just a 33 percent conversion rate on third downs. The Gamecocks fared much better than that against UCF, managing 10 first downs in 18 third-down attempts. Running backs coach Everette Sands said it was important for the Gamecocks to succeed on first and second downs to get manageable third-down situations. Davis scored his third touchdown of the game off a third-and-four from the Knights’ 13-yard line and junior quarterback Dylan Thompson ran in a two-yard score from a third-and-goal situation. It looked like the game was sealed late in the fourth quarter after a third down play where Thompson found sophomore tight end Jerrell Adams for a 44-yard gain that took the Gamecocks to the UCF 3-yard line. However, Davis fumbled on the next handoff to prevent a South Carolina score and kept the Knights in it.
Another Close Call On Defense
For the second consecutive game, the Gamecocks had a tough time closing out their opponent on defense. It seemed like South Carolina had the game in hand after a Davis touchdown to make it 28-10, but the Knights roared back on offense the following possession.
On the second play of the drive, junior quarterback Blake Bortles threw a 73-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Rannell Hall. Hall was wide open across the middle then raced up the sideline without any real issue from the USC defense. Defensive coordinator Lorenzo Ward said the three-safety zone defense South Carolina played was supposed to stop big plays, but it didn’t work out that way. The Gamecocks had an interception on the following UCF possession, but the Knights got the ball back after the Davis fumble. Bortles hit sophomore receiver Breshad Perriman for a 79-yard play that eventually led to a Central Florida touchdown to make it a 28-25 score.
Junior Jadeveon Clowney said after the T.J. Holloman interception, players on the USC bench were looking too happy, and the defensive end told his teammates there was still a lot of time left. The second 70-plus yard play came soon after and left Spurrier in a bad mood.
“We’re going to try and learn some three-deep defense and keep everything in front of us, because obviously we don’t know what the heck we’re doing playing when we get a big lead right now,” Spurrier said.
Senior cornerback Jimmy Legree and redshirt junior cornerback Victor Hampton both said the Gamecock defense has to put games away better and cannot play loose.
“It’s frustrating, especially because we want to be leaders on the defense,” Hampton said. “That’s one of the things we pride ourselves on, not giving up big plays, keeping the ball in front of us and making a team actually earn the touchdown.”
Byrd Contributes in Roland’s Absence
Sophomore wide receiver Shaq Rol and was suspended for Saturday’s game due to an undisclosed violation of the athletic department’s policy. After the game, Spurrier did not indicate how long Roland would be out. Junior receiver Damiere Byrd stepped in for Roland and made several key plays diving or jumping up to catch balls thrown his way. Byrd did not get off to a fast start this season, like he had hoped. Through the first three games, he caught three passes for 34 yards, but finished with five receptions and 74 yards against Central Florida. With Roland’s status uncertain, Byrd may continue to have an increased role.