(Video): 2-Minute Drill: Final thoughts before South Carolina kicks off against Florida
Before South Carolina takes on Florida this afternoon, here’s a few updates on today’s game plus a reminder what the keys are for the Gamecocks. Watch the video above.
Juice Wells
Listed as doubtful earlier in the week by Shane Beamer, Wells was not spotted with the team when the Gamecocks arrived. The news shouldn’t come as a surprise but it remains something that GC will continue to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.
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1- Start fast
Coming off a bye week, you never know what you’re gonna get from a team right away. Will their be some rust or will they come out clicking? In the past two years coming out of bye weeks, South Carolina has scored the first time they touched the ball. Not only that but they’ve never trailed in a game when they come out of a bye week. And just like those two games in Shane Beamer’s first two years at USC, this weekend’s game will also be held at Williams-Brice Stadium. A place where the crowd made a big difference in both.
I say all of this because that’s what needs to continue to happen this weekend. Florida has struggled on the road this year, but it’s not like they’ve played two stiff teams. No. Their losses came to Utah and Kentucky, two teams who are currently ranked in the top-25. Regardless of the opponent, the Gators have struggled on the road. If South Carolina can get up on them early, the crowd at Williams-Brice could play a major factor for the Gamecocks.
2- Third-down stops
Florida enters Saturday’s game ranked towards the bottom in the country in third-down conversions. In fact, Florida has a conversion rate ranked 25th worst in the country. Ironically, South Carolina’s defense is around that same mark when it comes to getting third-down stops.
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While USC should be healthier than they’ve been in quite some time and we should start to see more younger players get reps to provide some depth on defense, those are all assumptions. Until that’s proven in a game, in my mind I still view the Gamecocks as being thin on defense and needing to desperately get off the field to stay as fresh as they can. A lot of this will be determined by two things. The first, is eliminating explosive plays. That’s not just on the defensive backs, that’s on the entire defense doing their assignments. Second, creating more TFL. Force the Gators to play from behind the sticks so that they don’t have manageable third-down opportunities.
3- Give Rattler time
I don’t know how many more times this will be said this season but it’s vital. The offensive line has made improvements since Week 1 but they certainly took two steps back against Tennessee. But let’s call it for what it is, the Vols rank first in the country in sacks. That’s not an excuse but the defense USC will be seeing this weekend isn’t close to being on that same level as Tennessee. In fact, Florida ranks last in the SEC in sacks and are towards the bottom in that category in the country.
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While that sounds good we all know it comes down to execution. The Gamecocks are allowing the third most sacks to opponents per game this year despite being ranked 14th in the country in passing yards.
Let me know if you’ve heard this one before: give No.7 a chance to do what he does best.
