W
Wes Mitchell
Guest
With one scrimmage out of the way and South Carolina now deep into its third week of preseason practice, the starters at most of the positions are already starting to come into focus.
Could there be some changes as the coaches tweak and tinker with getting the best group on the field in the next three and a half weeks? Absolutely. But for the most part, I think we have a decent idea of where this is headed, particularly on defense.
The piece I do on the offense may be far more interesting...
Defensive Line
BUCK J.J. Enagbare
DE Aaron Sterling
DT Keir Thomas
DT Jabari Ellis
You get the sense listening to Will Muschamp talk that the first team unit is close to being solidified at this point, especially with his take on the second-team unit in Saturday's scrimmage (he was NOT happy).
But the one other player I would keep an eye on here is Zacch Pickens, who I hear has had some really nice moments and looks the part. Will he slide in there before the season starts? My guess is the coaches reward the seniors, but Pickens could push into the lineup eventually.
At this point, Rick Sandidge is probably your other DT backup but look out for Boogie Huntley as the year progresses.
On the edge, Enagbare is settling into BUCK and has had some good moments. I'd expect Jordan Burch to be his backup and for Brad Johnson to also get some snaps here, potentially, in pass-rush situations.
At defensive end, it seems like Joseph Anderson and Tonka Hemingway will battle it out for backup reps.
Linebacker
MIKE Ernest Jones
WILL Sherrod Greene (DIME Jahmar Brown)
SAM Brad Johnson
As long as all remain healthy, you can pretty much lock in this starting unit it seems.
On Saturday after the scrimmage, Muschamp lauded the play of Greene, who has worked in at the MIKE a lot with Jones out, and Johnson, who is settling in at the SAM. Jones is one of the sharpest players on the team and will slide right in once he's cleared by the medical staff soon.
Brown replaces the WILL backer when the Gamecocks go into their dime package.
Seems like you'd probably list Mo Kaba as the backup at WILL, Damani Staley at the MIKE and maybe Rosendo Louis at the SAM once he gets back healthy, though the crosstraining aspects here affect who would actually go in next in a game situation.
Secondary
(Regular)
CB Jaycee Horn
CB Israel Mukuamu
S Jammie Robinson
S RJ Roderick
(Nickel)
CB Jaycee Horn
CB Cam Smith
S Israel Mukuamu
S RJ Roderick
NICK Jammie Robinson
The four guys on the field in the "regular" package appear to be South Carolina's four best DBs right now.
When it comes to the nickel package, things are much more up in the air as far as exactly how you slot it to get the top five players on the field. If the positive buzz I've heard about Cam Smith continues to play out, then I think he's the next guy up in the nickel package.
That would mean the main two options would be to slide Izzy to safety and Jammie to nickel (as I did in the projection) or to slide Jaycee over to nickel and leave the rest the same.
You can make a strong argument for either line of thinking and it probably depends on a particular matchup as far as which is best.
Getting into the depth, I would think Johnny Dixon and Darius Rush are next in line at cornerback and Jaylin Dickerson and Shilo Sanders are next at safety.
Thoughts?
Could there be some changes as the coaches tweak and tinker with getting the best group on the field in the next three and a half weeks? Absolutely. But for the most part, I think we have a decent idea of where this is headed, particularly on defense.
The piece I do on the offense may be far more interesting...
Defensive Line
BUCK J.J. Enagbare
DE Aaron Sterling
DT Keir Thomas
DT Jabari Ellis
You get the sense listening to Will Muschamp talk that the first team unit is close to being solidified at this point, especially with his take on the second-team unit in Saturday's scrimmage (he was NOT happy).
But the one other player I would keep an eye on here is Zacch Pickens, who I hear has had some really nice moments and looks the part. Will he slide in there before the season starts? My guess is the coaches reward the seniors, but Pickens could push into the lineup eventually.
At this point, Rick Sandidge is probably your other DT backup but look out for Boogie Huntley as the year progresses.
On the edge, Enagbare is settling into BUCK and has had some good moments. I'd expect Jordan Burch to be his backup and for Brad Johnson to also get some snaps here, potentially, in pass-rush situations.
At defensive end, it seems like Joseph Anderson and Tonka Hemingway will battle it out for backup reps.
Linebacker
MIKE Ernest Jones
WILL Sherrod Greene (DIME Jahmar Brown)
SAM Brad Johnson
As long as all remain healthy, you can pretty much lock in this starting unit it seems.
On Saturday after the scrimmage, Muschamp lauded the play of Greene, who has worked in at the MIKE a lot with Jones out, and Johnson, who is settling in at the SAM. Jones is one of the sharpest players on the team and will slide right in once he's cleared by the medical staff soon.
Brown replaces the WILL backer when the Gamecocks go into their dime package.
Seems like you'd probably list Mo Kaba as the backup at WILL, Damani Staley at the MIKE and maybe Rosendo Louis at the SAM once he gets back healthy, though the crosstraining aspects here affect who would actually go in next in a game situation.
Secondary
(Regular)
CB Jaycee Horn
CB Israel Mukuamu
S Jammie Robinson
S RJ Roderick
(Nickel)
CB Jaycee Horn
CB Cam Smith
S Israel Mukuamu
S RJ Roderick
NICK Jammie Robinson
The four guys on the field in the "regular" package appear to be South Carolina's four best DBs right now.
When it comes to the nickel package, things are much more up in the air as far as exactly how you slot it to get the top five players on the field. If the positive buzz I've heard about Cam Smith continues to play out, then I think he's the next guy up in the nickel package.
That would mean the main two options would be to slide Izzy to safety and Jammie to nickel (as I did in the projection) or to slide Jaycee over to nickel and leave the rest the same.
You can make a strong argument for either line of thinking and it probably depends on a particular matchup as far as which is best.
Getting into the depth, I would think Johnny Dixon and Darius Rush are next in line at cornerback and Jaylin Dickerson and Shilo Sanders are next at safety.
Thoughts?
