The South Carolina football team is preparing for its first meeting with Louisiana Tech since the 1995 season. The Gamecocks have never been defeated by the Bulldogs, holding a 4-0-1 advantage from 1991-95.
What was the result the last time these two teams faced in 1995? Quarterback Steve Taneyhill tied a school record with five touchdown passes in the Gamecocks' 68-21 victory at home.
Will starting quarterback Jake Bentley put up a similar performance? Tech Talk sports writer Andrew Bell covers the Bulldogs and caught up with The Daily Gamecock sports staff to preview the upcoming matchup.
Q: Louisiana Tech is coming off a narrow win over Western Kentucky. What were your observations from the game?
A: First off, Tech's sophomore quarterback J'mar Smith really had an encouraging performance against Western Kentucky. He threw for a season high 306 yards and a touchdown pass after coming off of a rough performance against Mississippi State, where he turned the ball over three times. So he really showed some resolve and responded well to adversity. The offense produced some huge plays with four plays over 20 yards, including an 87 yard TD pass to sophomore receiver Rashid Bonnette. Tech's defense struggled early on, allowing two TDs on WKU's first three drives, but only allowed only 18 yards on 15 plays in the fourth quarter, as they were overcoming a 13-22 deficit to come back and win 23-22 on Barnes' GW field goal.
Q: While South Carolina is coming off a down offensive performance against Kentucky and will not have wide receiver Deebo Samuel on the field this week, the team put up more than 30 points in its first two games against NC State and Missouri. How do you think Louisiana Tech's defense will fare against Jake Bentley and offensive weapons Hayden Hurst, Bryan Edwards and Rico Dowdle?
A: The loss of Deebo Samuel will definitely be a huge blow, considering he is the recipient of over 35% of Jake Bentley's passing yards this season, but Tech's primary weakness on defense this year has been defending the run. They've allowed 582 rushing yards so far this season. South Carolina really got away from the running game against Kentucky last week and they paid for it. So, I think if they really feed Rico Dowdle the rock this week and stay consistent with the running game, then they can get Hurst and Edwards involved in play action and be pretty successful against Tech's defense. Tech's defensive line wasn't able to get much of a push up front against their last SEC opponent in Mississippi State but they did make some plays in the secondary. Bentley should be aware of true freshman cornerback Amik Robertson, who had an interception nearly returned for a touchdown off of Nick Fitzgerald, to go along with a pass deflection and a blocked extra point recovery returned for two points all in one game.
Q: Which Bulldogs have been standouts so far this season?
A: Offensively, we've got a young quarterback in J'mar Smith who has a lot of potential and can make plays out of the pocket, but he needs help from guys like senior running backs Jarred Craft and Boston Scott, who have turned into a dynamic duo. Craft and Scott both average over five yards a carry so far this year, can catch out of the backfield and have combined for 523 total yards from scrimmage this season. As far as the receivers go, there are a few who have contributed but no single player has really stood out among the rest. Junior Teddy Veal leads the team in receptions with 15 catches for 133 yards, so he's been a reliable target. Sophomore Rashid Bonnette has proved to be a real deep threat with five catches for 185 yards and two touchdowns. Senior receiver Marcus Gaines has four catches for 113 yards. Defensively, Junior defensive end Jaylon Ferguson is a really disruptive player who has 12 total tackles, a whopping five tackles for loss and two sacks. Junior Linebacker Brandon Durman is a consistent run supporter who leads the team in total tackles with 21, to go along with two tackles for loss and a sack. I've already mentioned the playmaking freshman cornerback Amik Robertson, who has 11 total tackles, a tackle for loss, an interception returned 61 yards, a pass deflection and a recovered extra point returned for two points. Senior kicker Jonathon Barnes is also a huge asset to this team as he is two field goals away from tying Louisiana Tech's record for career made field goals and is coming off of a game winning kick against Western Kentucky last week.
Q: What is your prediction (with score) for the Louisiana Tech-South Carolina game and why?
A: If I had to predict a score I would say 38-21 South Carolina, due to South Carolina's explosive offensive attack and Tech's inexperience at quarterback and receiver. I also think if South Carolina commits to the run, then they will accumulate a good amount of yardage in that department and rack up their stats on offense. Tech will show a valiant effort and make some plays, but at the end of the day South Carolina's talent will reign supreme.