How the second bye week affected South Carolina's defense
Having two bye weeks in one season comes with benefits and drawbacks for a thriving South Carolina defense. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, the second bye week came after a dominate week for the defense against Oklahoma.
However, one advantage to two bye weeks is the physical and mental rest for players during a vigorous SEC schedule.
“Two bye weeks is like, ‘Dang we just want to play football,'” fifth-year EDGE Kyle Kennard said. “Good for our bodies and to get some downtime, be around our families. But it was defiantly hard sitting down watching everybody play for a second time this year.”
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As a defense, it’s hard to continue building on positive momentum with a weeks rest in between. However, star defensive back Nick Emmanwori sees no break in momentum.
“I think we still have that momentum,” Emmanwori said. “I think a lot of guys are kind of sad really about the bye. We want to get into next week as fast as we can so I think we’re amped up and we’re ready to go.”
Emmanwori finished the 35-9 win over Oklahoma with 11 total sacks, seven of which were solo. He also had two interceptions, one of which was a 65-yard pick six.
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Meanwhile, Texas A&M is coming off a massive win over LSU and Emmanwori and company are eager to take on the Aggies under the lights on Saturday.
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“We got a big game coming up,” Emmanwori said. “It’s a night game, they just beat LSU, so it’s like a lot of energy behind this week. So, I think we’re ready as a defense.”
Redshirt senior linebacker Debo Williams recorded nine tackles and 0.5 sacks against the Sooners. As the success of the defense continues, he believes the group is hungry for more.
“This team is hungry, dog,” Williams said. “Some games we felt like we left out there and we just want to get those back and dominate even more, so we’re hungry.”
