Thoughts From Above: Week 1

I decided this year I wanted to cover college football a little different.  Expand our coverage of Gamecock football and maybe some others here on the website. So each week Brett will do what will mostly be a recap of the game and I will just write down my experience. Sometimes I will be at the games sitting in the press box, while other times I will watch from home, since one radio station is not allowed two credentials to South Carolina home games. Plus getting to away games is nearly impossible due to our schedule with high school football the night before, and Clary and Delaney still haven’t fulfilled my request for a Fox Sports Spartanburg helicopter or a jet.

So each week I will share some thoughts on the game, the food, the atmosphere, the experience as a whole. Whether it is at the game or on the television and sometimes even the radio.  Hopefully it will educate, entertain, and inform you (inside joke for those who listen to Bump and Run).

This week Brett and I were able to make the trip together to Atlanta for the Aflac kickoff.  Big thanks to Matt Garvey and the Communications staff for working with us to make it possible for us both to attend.  We left on Saturday afternoon, after we watched the final headgear picks from the legendary Lee Corso, and made the nearly 3.5 hour drive to our hotel just south of Atlanta (we don’t make enough money to stay downtown).

The day of the game we were awakened by what I assume was an overzealous housekeeper ready to clean our room despite the face that our do not disturb sign was out.  I was still in the bed when the door opened but couldn’t go back to sleep after seeing someone in my room while still in my drawers.  So, after that we got ready and left for the stadium.

Our provided parking spot was great and we made the short walk to the stadium next door, got our passes and headed to the press box.  The stadium was absolutely amazing. By far the nicest stadium that I have ever been in.  We were pretty early arriving in the press box just before noon.  It would be a little while before most of the other press arrived and they put out the food, but when they did it was terrific.  Two different pasta dishes, garlic knots, chicken, and salad.  Delicious. Desert was soft serve ice cream with a condiments bar that included sprinkles, nuts, Oreos, etc.  Popcorn, an assortment of drinks, and coffee were available the entire game.  at halftime we were treated to smash burgers, which had the toppings of a Big Mac.

The view from the press box was good. Not too far away where the players looked like ants.  In the end zone but high enough where you could see everything.  The Nyck Harbor catch that was initially ruled a touchdown but was then overturned, happened right in font of us.  The press area was not enclosed in glass therefore we got to experience all of the natural sound, which I love.

The game of course started out great for South Carolina. An opening drive of less than three minutes that netted a touchdown, had the overwhelmingly pr0-Gamecock crowd in a frenzy. As easy as they made that look it seemed a blowout might be on the horizon. But things settled down and the scoring slowed way down.

Overall South Carolina played well.  There are defiantly some areas that will need improvement going forward.  To me first and foremost the play of the offensive line.  They had some major struggles. They had some moments were the blocking was decent, and then disappeared. Rotating some different guys in at times made a difference, one that was noticeable was the insertion of Dorman product Markee Anderson at left guard in the second half.  I saw him do some good things and hope this will lead to some more substantial playing time for him going forward.  I think this unit will get better.  Cleaning up the communication stuff, and simply just play together will improve this unit.  Offensive lines have to gel. That can take some time.

LaNorris was good.  Not great but good enough.  He made some big plays when he had to and was efficient.  He obviously looked better in week one that some of the other quarterbacks that have been mentioned in the Heisman race preseason. He is a beast when running the ball and made some big throws. The deep ball that hit Harbor in stride was a dime.

Speaking of Harbor, he looked good. Yes I know he had the one drop that hit him right in the hands, but hey that happens.  The catch, and yes I’m calling it a catch, that was overturned was a super athletic play. The touchdown that was actually counted where he brought out his inner track start, was exactly the kind of play Gamecock fans have been clamoring for since he committed to the university.

The defense had its bright spots. I thought the linebackers played well and made their presence known.  The corners struggled, especially after the injury to the knee of Judge Collier.  Dylan Stewart was quiet in the first half but made some big plays in the second half when Carolina really needed them to thwart drives from the Hokies.  Shane Beamer said in his post game comments to Todd Ellis, that the corner backs would have to get better because “That’s how we play defense around here.” Beamer referring to how the Gamecocks often play defense where corners have little to no help over the top from safety’s.

Our experience in Atlanta was indeed a good one.  Again, Mercedes-Benz Stadium was wonderful. Beautiful, modern, loud, accessible, and according to reports the concessions are cheap.  The atmosphere was great and the amenities were awesome.  The game was sloppy at times but again I always expect sloppy in the first week.  College Football could really benefit from a preseason game.

One final thought. This was my first time seeing Virginia Tech play in person.  It really made me want to go to a game in Blacksburg.  Hearing those fans sing along with Enter Sandman was one of the cooler things I have seen. I cannot imagine how cool it would be to see it when the stadium is mostly Hokie Fans singing it at Lane Stadium, especially before a night game.  Might have to try and make that trip to see the Hokies and former Spartanburg Viking John Love.