The word most will use to describe that game will be sloppy. The weather wasn’t good for both offenses but I still expected more out of South Carolina’s offense today. It was a struggle for the offense in the second half. I think they only had four first downs in the second half and zero points. They also turned the ball over three times in the second half. It was just ugly in the second half and very surprising, despite the weather, considering how they have played the last several games.
Jake Bentley got off to a good start but didn’t look like himself after that. After the deep ball to Bryan Edwards for the touchdown, he couldn’t connect on a couple of other deep shots that were there. He has been really accurate on the deep ball, but that wasn’t the case today. The interceptions were at bad times and poor decisions. I would have liked Michael Scarnecchia to get in the game for a drive in the fourth quarter. It was a four-possession game and it was over.
Akron was able to get more pressure on Bentley at times than I thought they would. The running game wasn’t great but it wasn’t bad either. Mon Denson had the long run in the second half but the offense couldn’t convert it to points. Rico Dowdle had a couple nice runs but also had the fumble. It just wasn’t a clean game at all by the offense.
I hate the injury to Zack Bailey. He had a really good career at South Carolina and stepped up at different positions during his career. It would be great to see him play again in the bowl game but he should get an opportunity in the NFL.
It was good to see Deebo Samuel go out with a bang in his last home game. He was a touchdown machine in his career and had three today.
I thought the defense turned in a good performance. The two players that stood out to me were true freshmen RJ Roderick and JJ Enagbare. The injuries at the safety position this season has been a big problem but it will turn out to be a blessing for Roderick going forward. He is a big hitter and plays with confidence that this secondary desperately needs. He is only going to get better.
Enagbare had a big first half rushing the passer and then was really good against the run in the second half. He didn’t look like a true freshman today. He looked like the guy that the coaching staff was raving about when they were recruiting him. I know the defensive line class in 2019 looks really good, but the 2018 class of Enagbare, Rick Sandidge, and Josh Belk is pretty good as well. I still really like the future on the defensive line.
I also thought Israel Mukuamu and Ernest Jones did some good things today as well. To be honest, Mukuamu and Roderick both outplayed the two seniors today. Jones has the look of someone that will help next year at linebacker. He is fast and athletic, something the linebacker position at South Carolina needs.
South Carolina finishes the season 7-5. There were definitely games they could have easily won this year (Fla, A&M), but you can also turn that around and say there were games they could have easily lost (Mizz, OM, UT). At this point, it looks like they will be heading to the Belk Bowl with a shot at playing an ACC team. If they can finish the season with eight wins, then that will give them momentum heading into January and the finish of recruiting.
Jake Bentley got off to a good start but didn’t look like himself after that. After the deep ball to Bryan Edwards for the touchdown, he couldn’t connect on a couple of other deep shots that were there. He has been really accurate on the deep ball, but that wasn’t the case today. The interceptions were at bad times and poor decisions. I would have liked Michael Scarnecchia to get in the game for a drive in the fourth quarter. It was a four-possession game and it was over.
Akron was able to get more pressure on Bentley at times than I thought they would. The running game wasn’t great but it wasn’t bad either. Mon Denson had the long run in the second half but the offense couldn’t convert it to points. Rico Dowdle had a couple nice runs but also had the fumble. It just wasn’t a clean game at all by the offense.
I hate the injury to Zack Bailey. He had a really good career at South Carolina and stepped up at different positions during his career. It would be great to see him play again in the bowl game but he should get an opportunity in the NFL.
It was good to see Deebo Samuel go out with a bang in his last home game. He was a touchdown machine in his career and had three today.
I thought the defense turned in a good performance. The two players that stood out to me were true freshmen RJ Roderick and JJ Enagbare. The injuries at the safety position this season has been a big problem but it will turn out to be a blessing for Roderick going forward. He is a big hitter and plays with confidence that this secondary desperately needs. He is only going to get better.
Enagbare had a big first half rushing the passer and then was really good against the run in the second half. He didn’t look like a true freshman today. He looked like the guy that the coaching staff was raving about when they were recruiting him. I know the defensive line class in 2019 looks really good, but the 2018 class of Enagbare, Rick Sandidge, and Josh Belk is pretty good as well. I still really like the future on the defensive line.
I also thought Israel Mukuamu and Ernest Jones did some good things today as well. To be honest, Mukuamu and Roderick both outplayed the two seniors today. Jones has the look of someone that will help next year at linebacker. He is fast and athletic, something the linebacker position at South Carolina needs.
South Carolina finishes the season 7-5. There were definitely games they could have easily won this year (Fla, A&M), but you can also turn that around and say there were games they could have easily lost (Mizz, OM, UT). At this point, it looks like they will be heading to the Belk Bowl with a shot at playing an ACC team. If they can finish the season with eight wins, then that will give them momentum heading into January and the finish of recruiting.
