Front Porch FootballSouth Carolina Gamecocks: Previewing Vanderbilt
by Lee Wardlaw, Guest Writer
South Carolina: tale of the tape
In the opener, South Carolina rolled over Coastal Carolina, a local Sun Belt program entering its’ second season as an FBS program. Along the way, the Gamecocks scored their most points since 2013 while racking up 557 yards of total offense.
The team not only “broke out a few offensive wrinkles, including Deebo Samuel lined up at running back,” (according to Go Gamecocks) but also displayed the speed of offensive coordinator Bryan McClendon’s new system, turning in a 12-play, 75-yard drive in just 45 seconds in their final drive before the half.
The rushing defense kept the Chanticleers option attack in check, allowing 3.5 yards per carry. The Gamecocks secondary showed some weakness, giving up an 84.6% completion rate from Coastal starting quarterback Kilton Anderson.
After a win against Coastal, South Carolina moved to 24th nationally in the AP Poll. Headed into an all-important conference matchup with second-ranked Georgia, the underdog Gamecocks were hoping to upend the ‘Dogs in hopes of gaining an upper hand in the SEC East, but were rightfully humbled by the defending national runner-up.
Georgia controlled the game, possessing the ball for 11 minutes longer than South Carolina. The Bulldogs’ ground game was dominant, averaging 5.2 yards per carry and totaling 271 yards. Quarterback Jake Fromm’s passing attack wasn’t even necessary, but he still shredded the Gamecocks’ secondary, completing 83.3% of his passes.
South Carolina’s offense didn’t have the firepower to keep up with the Bulldogs. The Gamecocks’ rushing attack provided little advantage, averaging 2.7 yards per carry on twenty attempts.
Quarterback Jake Bentley completed 30 of 47 for 269 yards and a 63.3% completion rate, but don’t let the numbers fool you. Most of Bentley’s completions were short-yardage slant, corner, and out routes, and he was inaccurate with the deep ball and often targeted receivers covered by multiple Georgia defenders.
After two games, what can we conclude about the Gamecocks thus far?
Muschamp struggled against former teammate Kirby Smart. Image from Post and Courier.
The answer: not much. No one was expecting South Carolina to lose their home opener against a 29-point underdog at home in the opener, and only deluded fans thought that Will Muschamp’s team would take down Georgia.
We’ll learn a lot about this team in their upcoming back-to-back road trips at Vanderbilt and at Kentucky, and the first test will be against the Commodores in Nashville on Saturday.
Vanderbilt: tale of the tape
The stereotypical conference doormat in past years, the Commodores (2-1, 0-0 SEC) will attempt to start their conference slate with a win for the first time since 2011 and defeat the Gamecocks for the first time in nine tries.
Getting out of the gate with a win is ever-important in the rough and tumble SEC, a lesson head coach Derek Mason and his Vanderbilt team learned last season.
Hopes were high in Nashville after a 3-0 start that included a 14-7 victory over eighteenth-ranked Kansas State, but a 59-0 loss to Alabama brought the Commodores back to earth in the following week. This foreshadowed a season marked by disappointment, as Vanderbilt lost six of their last eight games, finishing 5-7 and only winning a single conference game.
A familiar pattern has developed during the beginning of this season.
While the Commodores aren’t 3-0, there’s buzz around the program that defeated two decent mid-major opponents (Middle Tennessee State and Nevada) and nearly upending eighth-ranked Notre Dame on the road last weekend.
Vanderbilt was outplayed on both sides of the ball and squandered two key scoring opportunities in the first half, along with playing poorly on defense. “We were not running through tackles, wrapping up, not doing the fundamental things,” said Commodores safety LaDarius Wiley.
However, this is the game Vanderbilt easily could’ve won.
Featured Image from USA Today
Quarterback Kyle Shurmur played well, completing 26-of-43 passes for 326 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
The Commodores even had a chance to win the game after a missed field goal by Notre Dame late in the fourth quarter, but a 4th and 10 drop by receiver Kalija Libpscomb with 1:07 remaining ended the threat.
Remember, the game could’ve been completely different if it weren’t for wide receiver Donaeven Tennyson’s fumble and drop that squandered back-to-back drives of 75 and 72 yards for the Commodores in the first half. The defense wasn’t all bad either, as they held steady in the red zone and only allowed two touchdowns to the Fighting Irish.
Key Factors
Turnovers will be key factor in deciding the winner of the game
The Commodores created three turnovers each against Middle Tennessee State and Nevada and were seventh in the nation in takeaways before facing Notre Dame.
However, Vanderbilt didn’t create a single takeaway against the Fighting Irish, while losing two fumbles an interception. On the other hand, South Carolina has only created two turnovers this season but has an even turnover margin and is one of the only teams that has yet to lose a fumble this season.
If Vanderbilt wants to win against the Gamecocks for the first time since 2008, they’ll need to win the turnover battle. While playing the Irish to the wire, they had a -3 turnover margin. News flash: that’s not going to win you many football games in this conference, especially in a closely contested series like this one.
Both teams have had more success in the air, rather than on the ground… who will establish a better running game?
South Carolina was embarrassed when it tried to rush the ball against Georgia, rushing for a putrid 54 yards on 20 carries. The Commodores were mildly more successful against Notre Dame, averaging 3.5 yards per carry on 27 attempts.
Both teams have had more success passing the ball against top-ten competition, and there’s multiple highly-touted receivers on both teams. Both rushing games have yet to claim a real identity in the rushing game, and the one that has more success should be able to put up more points.
Ty’son Williams looks to get more touches this week. Image from South Carolina Athletics.
South Carolina will likely need to establish a solid ground game to win the game. They’re 1-5 against SEC opponents when Bentley throws the ball 30 or more times, and 6-0 when he attempts 29 or fewer passes, according to Vandy247.
Battle in the trenches
Vanderbilt has shown relative ease getting into the backfield, collecting eight sacks this season and averaging seven tackles for loss per game. The Gamecocks’ offensive line has been solid, only allowed 3.5 tackles per loss in just two contests. Both teams have shown potential, and it’ll be interesting to see who wins the battle in the trenches.
Gamecocks secondary will be tested
South Carolina’s secondary has shown signs of weakness against Coastal Carolina and Georgia, allowing an 84.6% completion percentage to Chanticleers quarterback Kilton Anderson and 83.3% completion percentage to Bulldogs quarterback Jake Fromm.
Jamyest Williams. Image from USA Today.
The two quarterbacks threw only a combined 26 passes, and Vanderbilt will definitely be throwing the ball more than those running based teams. He drew blood against Notre Dame, will he light up the Gamecocks’ secondary.
South Carolina… rusty or rested?
South Carolina had an unexpected bye week when Hurricane Florence hit the East Coast last weekend. They’ve had plenty of time to rest and study film, but they haven’t played in two full weeks. Muschamp is 2-0 coming off of bye weeks with the Gamecocks.
The Mystery Factor
We saw a Vanderbilt team play a spirited contest against Notre Dame, but there was plenty of turnovers and some struggles on defense. Additionally, the Fighting Irish could be overrated, as they only beat Ball State by eight points.
The Gamecocks, on the other hand, played two teams from opposite ends of the spectrum: an upstart FBS program and a national title contender. We know a little bit about Vandy, and not a whole lot about South Carolina.
Street Fight?
To motivate his Commodores for this weekend’s contest, head coach Derek Mason is trying to promote a blue-collar atmosphere inside of the program. When he met with reporters on Nashville Tuesday, he donned a black shirt that showed no Vanderbilt branding, and the only visible design was a nameplate on the right pocket that read ‘Derek.’
Derek Mason Ready for Street Fight? Provided by Getty Images.
Mason even dubbed this week’s divisional matchup as a ‘street fight’ on multiple occasions, referring to bats, chains, and even referencing an MMA fighter. Commodores’ receiver Kalija Lipscomb also referenced the theme.
Prediction
Any preseason hype South Carolina had of being the darkhorse in the Eastern Division cooled after the blowout loss against Georgia. Meanwhile, excitement around the Vanderbilt program has been growing after a near-upset of eighth-ranked Notre Dame.
My opinion is this: first, the Gamecocks blowout loss to Georgia shouldn’t be a measuring stick for the program. Maybe if South Carolina played their best game of the season, they could’ve come within a touchdown of the Bulldogs.
Nevertheless, we don’t know very much about this team. The offensive line has held steady and there’s pieces to work at the skill positions, especially at wide receiver. The rushing defense shouldn’t be over-analyzed after getting run over by national power Georgia. The passing defense could be exposed by Vanderbilt, however.
Next, Vanderbilt’s near-upset of Notre Dame has caused too much attention, and I’m not a fan of this Derek Mason character. The Commodores made a statement by sticking it to Notre Dame, but the Fighting Irish haven’t proven anything this season with near losses to both Vanderbilt and Ball State, and they could end up being overrated again.
Yes, it was an inspiring performance, but there was plenty of errors and they very well could’ve won. But now, the whole ‘bats and chains’ and ‘street fight’ nonsense from Mason has taken on a life of its’ own. Why is all of this talk coming from a team that went 5-7 last season, with their lone conference victory coming against Tennessee?
Despite this, Vanderbilt should not be taken lightly. Quarterback Kyle Shurmur could expose the Gamecocks’ secondary, and the defense has some players to work with.
Vanderbilt has the edge at the quarterback position. Bentley hasn’t proven anything, as he was off target, erratic, and often thrown into traffic against Georgia when it wasn’t a simple slant or out route within the ten-yard range. Shurmur, on the other hand, completed plenty of long balls.
Kyle Shurmur is a solid QB, but will he have any help? Image from USA Today.
