Hilinski to Northwestern.

[Gamecock Lifer]

You stated there was an unspoken reason the situations were looked at differently so I can only guess but perhaps I’m wrong-Peace—we can leave it at that

I am just calling it how I see it man... I grew up a white boy in rural SC in the 80s. I have seen the dynamic play out a million times...

Good to see Roderick back - we need his experience. Glad he made that decision.

Yes! Huge position of need! He is an experienced guy, never been an “All American”, but he can play and we need experienced guys in the defensive backfield. I thought sure he had played his last game for SC, glad to see him making an effort to finish things the right way. I hope the new defensive scheme highlights his abilities and he plays like a champion for us next season.

 

[Horseshoe 04]

Hilinski was a good face, but I never saw a real chance at winning. I was frankly relieved when Hill was named opening game starter, and said so.

Although I was no superstar I played qb myself and I have always observed the other players interaction with their qbs; it’s not usually hard to see who they think should be out there. I have not noticed a lot of backlash by the players at not playing Hilinski. Just saying.

I think Hilinski has twice as many W as hill

 

[ToddFlanders]

That just seems like a better situation for him. Much more stable even if he never cracks the starting lineup.

 

[uscwatson21]

Yes- opting out mid season is different... Every situation is different. I have a ton more respect for guys who opted out and stayed around to be on the team again this year. Ortre is a good example... Apparently Roderick is another:

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This is the guy we should be cheering on and wishing “the best” to.

Roderick actually quit on the team. The fact we are letting him back shows how desperate we are.

 

[Dizzy01]

That is making excuses for him. We were not at practice, all we know is he did not win the job. It makes no sense that a coach on the hot seat would start a lesser option at QB just out of what? Spite? Do some of ya’ll really think they just “did not like Hilinsky”, and that is why he sat all year? Or maybe, just maybe he was not as good as the guys who played. That makes a lot more sense...

That true that we were not at practice which makes it much easier to continually make poor decisions on who should play. You also are assuming Muschamp thought he was on the hot seat. Tanner kept making excuses for him and even in the press conference where Muschamp was fired it certainly came across as though it was not Tanner’s decision.

I don’t think it had anything to do with not liking Hilinski as much as just further examples of Muschamp’s poor roster management. Keep in mind Bobo went for a punter over Deshaun Watson and you have a lot of questions about QB evaluation.

The bottom line is that Hill was the 10th ranked QB in the SEC and he kept being sent out week after week and poor performance after poor performance. People can make all kinds of excuses from the WRs to the oline to Muschamp but another thing we’ll never know was how much poor QB play contributed to this. Even when Bobo was the interim coach he went with Hill at QB. I don’t care if he pulled him the fact he still started him just shows it wasn’t all Muschamp.

 

[LBGCOCK]

Nope. I saw it. I also saw a bunch of players leave because things did not go exactly how they wanted. Why was it OK to trash Horn and the DBs who quit on the team, but not Hilinsky? They all did the same thing- Quit when things were tough. That is not a successful strategy in life. Best of luck to them all, I hope they learn from their mistakes.

I’m pretty sure he was here for the whole season, so that doesn’t go along with what you’re saying.

 

[Gamecockben1979]

Would you like me to say the unspoken reason so many of ya’ll TRULY treat him differently? Should I say the quiet part out loud?

Come on man. You’re better than this. It’s complete BS that you’re trying to race bait here.

There is racism everywhere but the bottom line is I’ve seen lines a mile long to get a picture with Big George and he hasn’t put on the uniform in 40 years. DJ Swearinger will always get love here because he went balls out on every play. John Abraham and Arturo Freeman went all out on an 0-11 team and there is nothing but love for them. I don’t remember our fans cheering a little louder for Ryan Stack than BJ McKie, Melvin Watson and Larry Davis. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Horn will never get that here because he never left it all out there on the field. He was talented and played hard until the game was out of hand and then he just played not to get hurt. Change my mind.

It’s not a white black thing with most. It’s a not busting your a$$ thing. These fans love Kevin Harris and Ernest Jones. Fans are knowledgeable and they know the difference between someone busting their a$$ and someone going through the motions.

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

I’m pretty sure he was here for the whole season, so that doesn’t go along with what you’re saying.

It does. They all (except Roderick apparently) quit. When they did it is virtually irrelevant.. It is actually more perplexing that RH would go through with the transfer after Bobo and Hill both left if, as so many say, Bobo was the catalyst of his leaving.

 

[Horseshoe 04]

YAWN, welcome to spring practice.................. carry on

 

[PalmettoG27]

you like me to say the unspoken reason so many of ya’ll TRULY treat him differently? Should I say the quiet part out loud?

hell yes, I love drama! SAY IT loud for America to hear! (I don’t understand the Ryan Hilinski leg humping that goes on either!)

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

Come on man. You’re better than this. It’s complete BS that you’re trying to race bait here.

There is racism everywhere but the bottom line is I’ve seen lines a mile long to get a picture with Big George and he hasn’t put on the uniform in 40 years. DJ Swearinger will always get love here because he went balls out on every play. John Abraham and Arturo Freeman went all out on an 0-11 team and there is nothing but love for them. I don’t remember our fans cheering a little louder for Ryan Stack than BJ McKie, Melvin Watson and Larry Davis. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Horn will never get that here because he never left it all out there on the field. He was talented and played hard until the game was out of hand and then he just played not to get hurt. Change my mind.

It’s not a white black thing with most. It’s a not busting your a$$ thing. These fans love Kevin Harris and Ernest Jones. Fans are knowledgeable and they know the difference between someone busting their a$$ and someone going through the motions.

That is my point though- why is RH getting all this love? Horn never left it all out on the field? Why? Because he quit on the team? RH did too, still a big “love in” for him and all the “good kid, good family” comments... Why is that relevant? Is he a better person than Shilo Sanders or Horn, or Izzy? Or Roderick? Anderson the backup DE who left? What makes RH better? I am not race bating, I am pointing out a double standard and commonly in my life’s history that double standard in situations like this is at least partially motivated by race. Nobody wants to admit it, most don’t even realize they are doing it but I 100% assure you the more positive sentiment associated with RH has a component in the color of his skin for many of the posters here whether they realize it or not.

 

[Coq.de.Combat]

Happy for him. I hope he does fantastic!

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

That true that we were not at practice which makes it much easier to continually make poor decisions on who should play. You also are assuming Muschamp thought he was on the hot seat. Tanner kept making excuses for him and even in the press conference where Muschamp was fired it certainly came across as though it was not Tanner’s decision.

I don’t think it had anything to do with not liking Hilinski as much as just further examples of Muschamp’s poor roster management. Keep in mind Bobo went for a punter over Deshaun Watson and you have a lot of questions about QB evaluation.

The bottom line is that Hill was the 10th ranked QB in the SEC and he kept being sent out week after week and poor performance after poor performance. People can make all kinds of excuses from the WRs to the oline to Muschamp but another thing we’ll never know was how much poor QB play contributed to this. Even when Bobo was the interim coach he went with Hill at QB. I don’t care if he pulled him the fact he still started him just shows it wasn’t all Muschamp.

Well said and fair points. I agree- I think Bobo and Muschamp both thought Hill was the better option. That is why he started him again.. The sad thing is that the WR problem meant it did not matter who was playing QB- they had nobody open and if the guys were open, they dropped the ball too often. Hill certainly played poorly at times, what I am saying is these coaches knew things were going poorly- if they saw a glimmer of hope in RH, he would have played a lot more. I am just hopeful we find some talented pass catchers and fast!

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

Roderick actually quit on the team. The fact we are letting him back shows how desperate we are.

I was not happy especially with the timing of when he did it. I still have more respect for a kid who seems to be realizing his mistake and is trying to make it right than a kid who just bails. I can forgive a lot for a player willing to put his health on the line to help my Gamecocks win. These players are with us OR AGAINST US. It is that simple in football. Our goal is to win games/win championships. Players who go to another team are now nothing but competition. Jmho

 

[Mcbulldog1]

That is my point though- why is RH getting all this love? Horn never left it all out on the field? Why? Because he quit on the team? RH did too, still a big “love in” for him and all the “good kid, good family” comments... Why is that relevant? Is he a better person than Shilo Sanders or Horn, or Izzy? Or Roderick? Anderson the backup DE who left? What makes RH better? I am not race bating, I am pointing out a double standard and commonly in my life’s history that double standard in situations like this is at least partially motivated by race. Nobody wants to admit it, most don’t even realize they are doing it but I 100% assure you the more positive sentiment associated with RH has a component in the color of his skin for many of the posters here whether they realize it or not.

RH in my opinion gets the attention because of the story he brought with him but for some reason even the new staff showed no interest even though we are in need of QBs. That confirms for me at least the off the field issues are real and he absolutely quit long before anyone else

 

[PalmettoG27]

I am a white male who lost 0 sleep because Hilinski left. However, if Kevin Harris(a black man) entered the portal I would literally cry. I judge players not by the color of their skin, but the content of their football playing ability.

 

[Gamecockben1979]

That is my point though- why is RH getting all this love? Horn never left it all out on the field? Why? Because he quit on the team? RH did too, still a big “love in” for him and all the “good kid, good family” comments... Why is that relevant? Is he a better person than Shilo Sanders or Horn, or Izzy? Or Roderick? Anderson the backup DE who left? What makes RH better? I am not race bating, I am pointing out a double standard and commonly in my life’s history that double standard in situations like this is at least partially motivated by race. Nobody wants to admit it, most don’t even realize they are doing it but I 100% assure you the more positive sentiment associated with RH has a component in the color of his skin for many of the posters here whether they realize it or not.

Look there are people with bias and there are people who are just flat out racists. Won’t deny it. That doesn’t build credibility.

But I also saw grown men white & black with tears in their eyes when Marcus Lattimore got hurt vs McDonald’s University. Saw the same thing when Joe Rhett collapsed on the court.

I think you’re just seeing the Hilinski thing through the wrong spectrum. His family was more visible than most thanks to the Hilinski foundation. More fans got to know his family than the black athletes you mentioned

I’m white but I’ll tell you the best experience I ever had with a parent of an athlete was when Eric Norwood and Kenny McKinleys family struck up a conversation with me before the Clemson game one year and we ended up tailgating with their families.

They’re black and come from great families. I wasn’t on this message board then or I probably would have brought it up. I don’t know you but I can tell you if you’re for the garnet and black then you’re cool with me. Sports and music do more to unify people than anything else in this world.

 

[Flameout12]

The cream rises to the top.
Just like with Jake, let's see how it plays out.

 

[alaskagamecock]

Maybe you should just support NW?

What did he say that was inaccurate? Speaking the truth disqualifies you as a fan, is that the new rule now?

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

I am a white male who lost 0 sleep because Hilinski left. However, if Kevin Harris(a black man) entered the portal I would literally cry. I judge players not by the color of their skin, but the content of their football playing ability.

As it should be! Amen to all of that

 

[DarkCock]

I'm happy for him. Feels like a good fit. Get out of this pressure cooker and into a more laid-back atmosphere. And the academics aren't too shabby there either. We can all move on now.

 

[DibbleDee]

After Hill’s nearly Heisman-worthy campaign, I can’t wait to see where he will end up.

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

Look there are people with bias and there are people who are just flat out racists. Won’t deny it. That doesn’t build credibility.

But I also saw grown men white & black with tears in their eyes when Marcus Lattimore got hurt vs McDonald’s University. Saw the same thing when Joe Rhett collapsed on the court.

I think you’re just seeing the Hilinski thing through the wrong spectrum. His family was more visible than most thanks to the Hilinski foundation. More fans got to know his family than the black athletes you mentioned

I’m white but I’ll tell you the best experience I ever had with a parent of an athlete was when Eric Norwood and Kenny McKinleys family struck up a conversation with me before the Clemson game one year and we ended up tailgating with their families.

They’re black and come from great families. I wasn’t on this message board then or I probably would have brought it up. I don’t know you but I can tell you if you’re for the garnet and black then you’re cool with me. Sports and music do more to unify people than anything else in this world.

Don’t get me wrong- I am speaking to the subconscious not the conscious decisions to like/not like someone. I am not calling you nor anyone else here a blatant “racist”, but if you are being honest and you are I assume of a similar age to me- “middle aged”- and grew up in the South... How many times in your life did you see the “he is a good kid from a good family” card played to make excuses/give a “break” to a white dude? I cannot even count the number of times in my life I saw white dudes get away with stuff that would have had a black kid labeled a “trouble maker/bad attitude/thug”... because they were “from a good family” 😉😉... It is a very common occurrence, and again I guarantee it is a (*subconscious) contributing factor to this odd obsession with a player who just quit on our team. Sure- great story, his family has a charity, yayy... I think Deon Sanders is a pretty good dude too, bet he has given more to charity than RH’s family... but there were not lengthy threads made to wish him well and talk about what a great guy Shilo is when he left.. we lost like a half dozen guys to transfer this offseason and most were met with something similar to what I said above “buy quitter”... RH gets celebrity treatment. I just don’t get it, agree with it or like it much TBH. I pull for the Gamecocks, not Northwestern. He can go be a star there or be the water boy- him winning or failing at another school does nothing to help us get better.

 

[Dizzy01]

That is my point though- why is RH getting all this love? Horn never left it all out on the field? Why? Because he quit on the team? RH did too, still a big “love in” for him and all the “good kid, good family” comments... Why is that relevant? Is he a better person than Shilo Sanders or Horn, or Izzy? Or Roderick? Anderson the backup DE who left? What makes RH better? I am not race bating, I am pointing out a double standard and commonly in my life’s history that double standard in situations like this is at least partially motivated by race. Nobody wants to admit it, most don’t even realize they are doing it but I 100% assure you the more positive sentiment associated with RH has a component in the color of his skin for many of the posters here whether they realize it or not.

Apples and Aardvarks. Horn and Izzy quit during the season. I think almost everyone expected Sanders to join his Dad and his brother. Roderick has played less the longer he has been here and Anderson barely saw the field. You’re not talking about a guy who was forced into action as a true freshman only to be benched for a poorly performing CSU transfer forced in by an OC people were simply “meh” about.

A better comparison would be to look at Kier Thomas but people have wished him well and hated to see him leave so I guess that wouldn’t have for the narrative.

 

[76gintcock]

Welp, guess he is deffinitely not coming back now! 😂

Best of luck kid... Try not to quit again if things get tough.

Wow. You're pretty clearly a consummate jerk.

 

[Gamecockben1979]

Don’t get me wrong- I am speaking to the subconscious not the conscious decisions to like/not like someone. I am not calling you nor anyone else here a blatant “racist”, but if you are being honest and you are I assume of a similar age to me- “middle aged”- and grew up in the South... How many times in your life did you see the “he is a good kid from a good family” card played to make excuses/give a “break” to a white dude? I cannot even count the number of times in my life I saw white dudes get away with stuff that would have had a black kid labeled a “trouble maker/bad attitude/thug”... because they were “from a good family” 😉😉... It is a very common occurrence, and again I guarantee it is a (*subconscious) contributing factor to this odd obsession with a player who just quit on our team. Sure- great story, his family has a charity, yayy... I think Deon Sanders is a pretty good dude too, bet he has given more to charity than RH’s family... but there were not lengthy threads made to wish him well and talk about what a great guy Shilo is when he left.. we lost like a half dozen guys to transfer this offseason and most were met with something similar to what I said above “buy quitter”... RH gets celebrity treatment. I just don’t get it, agree with it or like it much TBH. I pull for the Gamecocks, not Northwestern. He can go be a star there or be the water boy- him winning or failing at another school does nothing to help us get better.

I get what you’re saying. I have seen it but my experience was abnormal. I grew up in the Columbia High area and I was the minority. In fact, there’s several school pictures where I am the only white guy. Family moved to the suburbs eventually and went to and it was probably 60/40 split so fairly even white and black. So my experience is probably different than most middle aged white guys that grew up here.

I do have a lot of pride in my university and I do not think we discuss enough the opportunities given to minorities at our school. The percentage of black students and graduates at USC is much higher than similar state schools.

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

Apples and Aardvarks. Horn and Izzy quit during the season. I think almost everyone expected Sanders to join his Dad and his brother. Roderick has played less the longer he has been here and Anderson barely saw the field. You’re not talking about a guy who was forced into action as a true freshman only to be benched for a poorly performing CSU transfer forced in by an OC people were simply “meh” about.

A better comparison would be to look at Kier Thomas but people have wished him well and hated to see him leave so I guess that wouldn’t have for the narrative.

No two situations or people are identical, it does not make them dissimilar..

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

I get what you’re saying. I have seen it but my experience was abnormal. I grew up in the Columbia High area and I was the minority. In fact, there’s several school pictures where I am the only white guy. Family moved to the suburbs eventually and went to and it was probably 60/40 split so fairly even white and black. So my experience is probably different than most middle aged white guys that grew up here.

I do have a lot of pride in my university and I do not think we discuss enough the opportunities given to minorities at our school. The percentage of black students and graduates at USC is much higher than similar state schools.

I hear you- I grew up in Allendale. I was absolutely a minority most of my life growing up as well.

 

[fowl_mood]

Let's face it, this is basically the north shore of Chicago. This is an incredible market to grow the charity. That might be a plus for him given he now has to deal with the fact that the football thing might not work out. Why not go somewhere with a bigger stage, and if you get extra exposure and eventually make a career of the game, its a plus.

 

[Dizzy01]

No two situations or people are identical, it does not make them dissimilar..

True and if you ignore everything specific you can almost make it fit whatever you want. You could just as easily have said why does everyone want the offensive guy to stay but don’t care about the defensive players leaving.

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

True and if you ignore everything specific you can almost make it fit whatever you want. You could just as easily have said why does everyone want the offensive guy to stay but don’t care about the defensive players leaving.

Now you are just going off on a tangent... We were comparing student athletes who chose to quit on our team. There is a clear common thread there, with easy comparisons to make and the timing being different by a few weeks for some does not change that.

 

[vidaliagamecock]

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Now, he's set for life. A Northwestern education is worth its price in gold and he gets to play football.

 

[biting curve]

I find it hard to believe that someone who started as a freshman in the SEC was not given more of an opportunity.

TBH, he started as a true Freshman because we didn't have any other viable options. Wish he could've redshirted instead of being thrown into the fire when Bentley went down.

Anyone who paid attention could clearly see his first season his mechanics going into the crapper as the season wore on, between his elbow, his knee, and having opposing defenses treat him like a tackling dummy.

Bobo correctly pointed out flaws in his mechanics that he needed to work on, particularly footwork. Whether he did or didn't take that advice to heart will likely never been publicly released, my understanding from private conversations with those who would know is he didn't put in the work necessary to fix his mechanics.

Again, TIFWIW, my understanding is he butted heads with Bobo in large part because he felt "entitled" to the starting position....he was the face of his family foundation, and he'd never really faced true criticism of his play from the very first day he started playing football. When someone pumps you up your entire life with accolades, sometimes it's difficult to take criticism. Bottom line, he couldn't beat out Hill and Doty for the job, and there isn't a coach in America who is willing to risk a job purposely bypassing a better player for some sort of strange agenda. Muschamp knew his lifeline was getting short, and Bobo's job was connected to Muschamp...they were going to play the best guy.

If you want any additional proof, check out the clip of RH training with Garcia. What was he working on? Footwork.

Nothing negative against RH. Good kid, good family. Some times it hurts to have your ego blown up. I would've advised him to stick it out here, put in the work, and overcome the adversity. Bentley has shown that running away doesn't necessarily fix things, now he's transferred again.

But maybe he and his family thought he needed a fresh start. Hope it all works out for him.

 

[Dizzy01]

Now you are just going off on a tangent... We were comparing student athletes who chose to quit on our team. There is a clear common thread there, with easy comparisons to make and the timing being different by a few weeks for some does not change that.

Only if you ignore every other factor.

 

[The Gadfly]

Look, the bottom line here is that Hilinski’s fundamentals were off; either from the beginning, or deteriorated from playing hurt most of his freshman year. Apparently, he and the staff weren’t able to correct this. It may be better for him and us for him to get a fresh start somewhere else; besides, no matter who a player is, or what his backstory is, if he doesn’t want to be here, we don’t need him here. Same goes for coaches; if you don’t want to be here, if you’re not totally committed to the program, you need to go somewhere else. We want to fix this program and its culture, we need coaches and players (and fans) who buy in 100% to the new staff, new culture and and new system. I don’t particularly care for that “All In!” slogan the taters use, but apparently, the concept behind it works for them; just might work here as well.

 

[biting curve]

Keep in mind Bobo went for a punter over Deshaun Watson and you have a lot of questions about QB evaluation.

Urban myth.

Watson was a lock to Clemson for a few years, I think Fat Brad had him locked up in either 8th or 9th grade. His HS switched to Clemson's playbook and terminology so he'd be familiar with the system from day 1 of enrolling.

No sense in wasting time and resources trying to recruit a player you have zero chance of signing.

 

[biting curve]

Roderick actually quit on the team. The fact we are letting him back shows how desperate we are.

Horn and Izzy are both projected to be drafted pretty highly. My understanding is RJ got caught up in that, overestimated his worth, and quit playing under the assumption he'd also get picked highly.

Like a lot of people, he eventually woke up and realized the Ten he took to bed was actually a Two once the sun rose.

Yes, we can use his experience, you can call it desperation. He also needs more time to develop. Maybe he talked to Swearinger, or maybe the staff convinced him Coach Gray can elevate him to the next level. Maybe both.

 

[vipercock]

B1G player of the year 2022.

 

[biting curve]

Let's face it, this is basically the north shore of Chicago. This is an incredible market to grow the charity. That might be a plus for him given he now has to deal with the fact that the football thing might not work out. Why not go somewhere with a bigger stage, and if you get extra exposure and eventually make a career of the game, its a plus.

The charity had enormous exposure throughout the SEC and the nation when he was starting. I think everyone will agree that between the virus and losing his starting spot the charity pretty much went on the backburner this year.

If he doesn't win the starting spot at NW, the size of the market concerning the charity is irrelevant. And quite honestly, if all things were equal and he was starting here, he'd get more national exposure playing a SEC schedule. He can get a great education from a prestigious university at NW, but he truthfully was probably more in the mix for playing time here.

 

[uscwatson21]

Horn and Izzy are both projected to be drafted pretty highly. My understanding is RJ got caught up in that, overestimated his worth, and quit playing under the assumption he'd also get picked highly.

Like a lot of people, he eventually woke up and realized the Ten he took to bed was actually a Two once the sun rose.

Yes, we can use his experience, you can call it desperation. He also needs more time to develop. Maybe he talked to Swearinger, or maybe the staff convinced him Coach Gray can elevate him to the next level. Maybe both.

I just find it interesting everyone is talking about this culture change, and exciting just to bring back a player that epitomizes the Muschamp culture.