CornerstoneColumbia.com
It’s game week. South Carolina’s staff has continued in its preseason preparations and will now turn its focus in full to Coastal Carolina…
After spending preseason camp “working on South Carolina”, as Will Muschamp is fond of saying, the time has now come to dive into installing the game plan for the Gamecocks’ opener.
Coastal will bring a lot of youth to Columbia, including four sophomores as starters along the defensive line. One would think that if the Gamecocks were hoping to go ahead and get the running game untracked for the 2018 season, that this would be the game to do it. USC’s running back room has been one of the most competitive, if not the most competitive, on the team in preseason. Rico Dowdle, Ty’Son Williams, AJ Turner, and Mon Denson have all pushed each other and all appear to be in line to garner carries of varying load during the course of the season. The fact that coach Bobby Bentley has publicly mentioned that he’d like to have one guy get the hot hand and run with the position only serves to increase that competition. With a fully healthy group that looks to be improved, this is an intriguing position for week one and the remainder of the 2018 slate.
From what I’m told, Muschamp’s talk about the staff trusting Michael Scarnecchia’s abilities is not just talk. The fifth year senior has barely played in Columbia, and no doubt there’s a substantial dropoff after Jake Bentley on this roster. Yet Scarnecchia has shown an ability to run the offense efficiently in preseason and he’s made some very impressive throws in tight windows during practice also.
To piggyback off what Wes Mitchell has mentioned, junior Bryan Edwards has had a big preseason for the Gamecocks. With all the (deserved) talk about Deebo Samuel is his impact, Edwards almost gets lost in the conversation a bit given his production to date and his talent. Edwards is set to see his role increase even further this season, because as of today he would be the team’s lead punt returner. I’ve had multiple sources note to me that he’s been impressive on that front in practice. Catching punts is a different animal than just catching balls as a receiver, but Edwards has proven very adept at judging and securing the ball. He’s also a tough open field runner with underrated elusiveness, so he’ll give USC a chance to make some plays after the catch as well.
Rice graduate transfer JT Ibe is a player the staff brought in to increase competition at the safety position, and despite missing a part of the preseason recovering from a hip injury, he’s appeared to pick things up quickly there. There have been times in practice in which Ibe has pulled down some first team reps at the safety spot.
I’ve had more folks who have attended practice contact me essentially shaking their heads about freshman Israel Mukuamu and how he looks in practice; his combination of length, ability to run, and ball skills is very intriguing. Will Muschamp’s already said he will see the field in year one.
Spots are limited in the 2019 class for South Carolina, with just a handful of legitimate targets remaining in the class….
One that has been in the crosshairs is Florida defensive tackle Jaquaze Sorrells. The four-star’s announcement date has been scheduled for today, but we mentioned in our August 22 Insider Report that there was a chance that he could opt to put things off and wait longer.
As of this writing, there is not a certain answer as to whether Sorrells will go ahead and pull the trigger or wait things out. I’m inclined, based on gut feel and current information, to say that he will wait and take some official visits during the season. Alabama, FSU, and Oregon are all also involved here, with the Crimson Tide representing probably South Carolina’s biggest competition right now.
Just as a quick refresher, safety Jammie Robinson (USC lean), offensive linemen Darius Washington (Mississippi State commitment visiting for the Georgia game), Jakai Moore (USC lean), and Jaydon Hill (ongoing battle with Florida, South Carolina, and Tennessee) all remain on the board. We're also still tracking five-star Quavaris Crouch.
Last edited:
