The weather could not have taken any further of a leap in extreme from week one to week two in Columbia unless temps dropped to the thirties and a blizzard ensued. From record heat last week to rains heavy and proportionate enough to elicit feelings of needing to build an ark this week. But, rain was not the only type of drops falling in Saturday night’s battle between the Gamecocks and the Towson Tigers.
South Carolina pass catchers in fact did not catch a lot of passes, dropping seven — a major uptick from just one last week against Kent State. In general, it was a tough offensive day for South Carolina despite what the scoreboard and the stats say.
A week after shutting out Kent State and showing offensive signs of life not seen over the entirety of the previous season and beating an opponent they were supposed to convincingly for a change, Kendal Briles’ offense sputtered out of the gate against an FCS opponent they were supposed to beat just as handily. By the time the clock hit triple zeroes, the scoreboard read that Carolina did what they were supposed to. After all, they not only scored over 40 points in back to back weeks and got off to a 2-0 start — Briles’ offense racked up 502 total yards.
But, simply put, it just did not feel like it. Sure, maybe that is an over reaction based on expectations that were set a little high. After all, the defense looked amazing. They held Towson to just 203 yards of total offense and an average just over three yards per play. The defense also held the Tigers to just nine points, and only 21 rushing yards, forcing 11 punts on the night.
The run game was also amazing. One thing that has been made obvious over the first two weeks is that the Gamecocks have a real stable of running backs. South Carolina amassed 405 of their total yardage on the ground, averaging just shy of 10 yards per carry. Three different backs had a touchdown — Matt Fuller leading all ball carriers with 125 yards and a score on 11 touches.
In the second half, during wave two of the monsoon and its soggy aftermath, JaBree Coleman had a TD to go with six carries for 32 yards. Isaiah Augustave had a strong fourth quarter with a touchdown on three carries for 61 yards. We even got a glimpse at a quarterback that resembled 2024 LaNorris Sellers, who ended up as the second-leading rusher with 119 yards and a score on seven attempts.
But, that is where the positives end for the offense, which started the game slow with a fumble and a three and out in its first two series. It took until the 3:55 mark of the 2nd quarter for Carolina to finally get some offensive points on the board — coming when Fuller broke loose for a 55 yard touchdown run. Before that, special teams put 10 on the board in the first period — the first a punt return TD from Vicari Swain, who broke the program record for most in a career with five when he repeated the feat in the third quarter.
It was a sloppy mess of a game, and no, I am not referring to the moist weather and field conditions. Again, South Carolina had seven dropped passes. Nyck Harbor let two in a row fall to the turf to turn the ball over on downs in the third quarter, ending what was one of the better drives of the night. Harbor was also the leading pass catcher with just 35 yards on two receptions. The next closest was Brady Hunt with 22 yards on three snags.
South Carolina had just 97 passing yards and no touchdowns through the air, and 96 of those yards came from LaNorris Sellers, who also had an interception — granted one that came on a tipped pass. There was no balance to the offense, and to boot, the offensive line struggled early on. Sellers was sacked for a loss of seven or otherwise he would actually have netted as the team’s leading rusher.
But, what was the cause of all that? Was it the weather? Was it just a collective bad week or was something just off for a few individuals? Is it a reason to be concerned?
Personally, I feel like the only thing worse than an over reaction to week one is to over react to week two. Sure, there is the old cliché. “Your biggest improvement is from week one to week two.” Maybe there is some truth to that. But I do not think this week is a case where that can be said. Look at the circumstances. It was a ‘buy game’ against an FCS team. There were two monsoons of Biblical proportions. There was a lengthy lightning delay. There was almost no crowd left except for the marching band to give the team any energy in the second half.
Yes, LaNorris looked to lack touch on some of his throws. But, the drops cannot all be credited to that anymore than you can blame it on the rain. Take away the two Harbor drops and five others had one. Sellers maybe can be blamed for two of those.
I get the frustration from fans. After the disaster that was Mike Shula’s tenure, Gamecock fans got a taste of what they wanted to see from Kendal Briles last week. Against another opponent they outmatched, the fans wanted to see a big game from the offense once again. They wanted consistency — myself included.
Maybe someone is reading this and thinking I am being ridiculous to sound upset about a 45-9 blowout. You’re right. I sound like Clemson fans back in their glory days when Trevor Lawrence, Tee Higgins, and Travis Etienne terrorized and torched opposing defenses — whining about not being up 42-0 at the end of the first quarter. In fact, it could be worse, Carolina fans. They could have current Clemson’s problems — a coach that has no clue with a team and staff that look to be giving up on him. Clemson fans are miserable to the point of hoping to scrape by against the bad teams on their weak schedule.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying South Carolina is any better. The point still stands. They have beaten two nobodies — and despite the numbers, did not convince this week. But, the big overarching point to be made here is that fans need not over react.
At the end of the day, I do feel like this was an off game for the offense, and it was not just any one player’s doing. We are two weeks in, and there is absolutely no reason to panic. It looks like they regressed. But, South Carolina always has a stinker against an FCS opponent. This game heavily resembled their week two win over South Carolina State last year — special teams helped put the game away.
But, sticking to that same example, last year we knew what we were getting into with Mike Shula. Last year, the offensive line was so bad the Gamecocks could not even run the ball, whereas Saturday, the run game was the biggest positive. The fact any positive could be found in the offense at all last night is another box checked for Kendal Briles.
Kendal still needs time and patience from fans. The offensive issues are not going to totally go away after a week, or even over the course of the entire season. They will still have their struggles. Basically, yes, the Gamecocks DO have a ton to clean up before they face Mississippi State next week. But, right now, panic is not a rational response — no matter how natural it may feel for South Carolina fans.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login