Tuesday update on South Carolina injuries for Jacksonville State game

As has become commonplace throughout the 2023 season, South Carolina football coach Shane Beamer provided a Tuesday afternoon update on the Gamecocks’ ever-growing injury list.

“Trai Jones will not play; he will be out,” Beamer said. “Everyone else is questionable. Those guys that got banged up last week all did a little bit in practice today, some more than others. As far as Juice (Wells), he’s getting closer and closer. I don’t know if he’ll be quite ready for Saturday. I’m not ready to quite rule him out yet. We’ll see how the week goes, but nobody (else) I can sit here today and say, ‘He’s definitely out.'”

The group Beamer is likely referring to includes offensive lineman Vershon Lee, wide receiver Xavier Legette and tight end Trey Knox.

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Jones went down with a high-ankle sprain against Texas A&M while tight end Trey Knox exited the matchup with a hamstring injury he suffered while attempting to make a catch.

Beamer seemed optimistic on Sunday that Knox would be able to play this coming week.

Legette was questionable entering the Texas A&M game and was able to play but was clearly not himself. He also missed the final drive against A&M after getting rolled up.

Wells was limited during the first three games after having preseason foot surgery but appeared to be getting close to his old self when he scored the first touchdown of Saturday’s matchup with Georgia.

But he had to exit to the locker room right after that score with a feared broken bone in his foot and has missed every game since.

Beamer was asked about the amount of work that Wells has been doing to get back.

“It’s a lot (of work) just in the training room, you’ve got to be committed to getting better every day, and he continues to be a great teammate,” Beamer said. “He’s in every meeting, so he’s helping the receivers. He’s in the team meetings, obviously, he’s in the special teams meetings. So he’s in the meetings, he’s still listening, he’s learning, he’s giving input, and then he’s really working hard on his own, whether he’s out on the practice field with us doing stuff, or whether he’s in the training room, which is what he is most of the time, in there working like crazy to get back. To not just get back, but to get back where he is the Juice that we all remember from last season as well. So he’s a competitor. He’s hungry to get back and certainly on the right track.”

Offensive linemen Trovon Baugh and Tree Babalade were also both questionable entering the matchup. Baugh was able to start and play while Babalade was only available “in emergency” — that emergency came when Jones suffered his injury, forcing Babalade in at left tackle with Jakai Moore sliding over to left guard. Those two should be good to go on Saturday, Beamer said Sunday.

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Lee, who made the move from center to right tackle for the first time this year against Florida, exited that game with a knee injury late in the first half and did not travel to Mizzou or Texas A&M.

Offensive lineman Cason Henry was injured on the fourth play of the season against North Carolina and has missed every play since but appears to be getting closer to a potential return. Beamer did not give a specific update on Henry on Tuesday.

South Carolina and Jacksonville State are set for a noon kickoff at Williams-Brice Stadium this upcoming Saturday.

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