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Judge Collier 'starting to get my feet underneath me' as freshman on Gamecock defense

imageby:Jack Veltri•09/28/23•

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Judge Collier (C.J. Driggers/GamecockCentral)

Playing freshmen is nothing new for South Carolina. It has done it before and continues to do so this year.

So when freshman defensive back Judge Collier took the field in Week 1, it wasn’t a surprise. While he only played two snaps that night, his reps have slowly increased. He most recently played 37 snaps against Mississippi State last Saturday.

“I definitely feel like I’m starting to get my feet underneath me,” Collier said. “I’m starting to get an understanding of the defense and feeling a lot more comfortable and making plays.”

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Collier has played 70 total snaps this season. And with more reps, he’s continuing to progress. He made three tackles in the win over the Bulldogs last weekend. His biggest play came when he recovered a fumble forced by Jordan Strachan and took it to the Misssissippi State 22-yard line. It gave way to the Gamecocks taking a 10-point lead.

Tackling has been Collier’s strong suit. He owns an 80.9 tackling grade, according to PFF. His defensive grade is 61.8, while he has a 61.7 coverage grade. But he believes he will keep getting better with more experience under his belt.

“I definitely feel I’m trusting my training, the technique that coach (Torrian) Gray has us use and apply on the field. So that’s definitely helped me. He’s taught me a lot,” he said.

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Collier’s next chance to play will come in what will be a loud, tough environment. The Gamecocks head to Knoxville to take on No. 21 Tennessee Saturday night.

The Volunteers have been big on tempo ever since Josh Heupel took over as head coach in 2021. They’re averaging 73 offensive plays per game. It’s something that Collier admitted he hasn’t faced this year or when he was in high school.

“We practiced it every day in practice, keeping up with the tempo so that we’re prepared,” Collier said. “We will be prepared this weekend.”

Collier wasn’t on the team when South Carolina defeated the then-No. 5 Vols 63-38 last year. But it was his official visit and he still remembers it vividly.

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“It was insane,” he said. “So they keep the recruits up there in a section. When they said that we were going to rush the field, I had a nice pair of shoes. I took my shoes off, I gave them to my mom. I said, I’m running on the field.

“It was me and a couple others. I remember (Desmond Umeozulu) was out there. We were all out there on the field at the 50. It was a good time.”

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At the time, Collier already committed to South Carolina. But that game further solidified why he chose the Gamecocks.

“I just remember, when Juice (Wells) went up on that one play, I was like, we definitely got this. We knew we were going to rush the field and everybody was crowding the bushes. And I was like, ‘Yeah, this is where I want to be for the next four years,'” Collier said.

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