High-tempo ECU offense posses threat to Gamecocks
The last time the Gamecocks saw East Carolina’s senior quarterback Shane Carden, it was 2012 and then-starting quarterback Rio Johnson had just been yanked in favor of the sophomore.
The Shane Carden era began during the second half of the Pirates’ 48-10 loss to South Carolina, as Johnson never saw another snap for the team, ultimately transferring.
And 25 starts later, Carden’s journey has come full circle, leading him back to Williams-Brice Stadium for the first time in two years.
But for the Gamecocks’ defense, he couldn’t come at a worse time.
Just one week after surrendering 680 total yards to Texas A&M in a deflating season-opening loss, No. 21 South Carolina welcomes in a Pirates squad that favors the Aggies in a variety of ways.
“ECU is a good team. They go pretty fast. We’re preparing for their speed just like we prepared for Texas A&M,” redshirt senior defensive tackle J.T. Surratt said. “They try to get the ball out quick as well, but, like I said, we’re working on our pass rush game, we’re working on getting to the
quarterback this week.”
The Pirates utilize the same high-tempo offense that gave the Gamecocks fits last week against the Aggies. East Carolina was able to reel off 74 plays against North Carolina Central, compared to the 99 plays ran by Texas A&M last week.
“They play a little bit like Texas A&M on offense,” head coach Steve Spurrier said. “Quarterback gets the ball out of his hands quickly, excellent receivers, pretty good running game.”
Carden finished seventh in the nation in passing yards, eclipsing Johnny Manziel’s 4,114 total by 25 yards.The Pirates’ signal caller also completed 70.5 percent of his passes in 2013-2014, second only to Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s mark of 71 percent.
Of Carson’s 4,139 passing yards last season, 1,284 were directed at senior wide receiver Justin Hardy. He has 3,134 career receiving yards in his four years at East Carolina, and pulled in eight receptions for 87 yards and two scores last week against North Carolina Central. Hardy also completed one pass for 41 yards and a touchdown in the team’s 52-7 rout of the Eagles.
The senior wide receiver caught eight passes for 111 yards and a touchdown in 2012 against a
South Carolina secondary that featured terrors like D.J. Swearinger and Victor Hampton.
For a defense that allowed Aggies’ senior receiver Malcome Kennedy to catch 14 passes for 137 yards, Hardy against South Carolina’s secondary could be a nightmare of a matchup.
“This week is really going to show what kind of people we’ve got on the team,” Surratt said. “[It’ll] show how strong-minded we are. We’ve got to get back out there and get back on the bike. We fell off, but we’ve got to get up and keep going.”
For Surratt and the rest of the defensive line, disrupting the rhythm of Carden will be essential for keeping the Pirates off the board.
East Carolina gave up only one sack in their opener, the same number the Gamecocks were able to muster against the Aggies.
South Carolina was also unable to get off the field on the third down last week. The defense allowed Texas A&M to convert over 70 percent (12-17) of their third downs.
The only team in the nation that allowed more third down conversions in its opener was Bowling Green against Western Kentucky.
Despite his defense’s historically abysmal performance against Texas A&M, Spurrier reiterated his confidence in his team’s defense.
“We think we’ve got the players to fix it,” Spurrier said. “So we’re going to find out here Saturday night.”