scfan5338
09-12-2006, 06:11 PM
If you're planning on attending Saturday night's game between South Carolina and Wofford at Williams-Brice Stadium, you should plan to purchase a program.
That's because USC intends to employ as many as four to seven new offensive starters against the Terriers, head coach Steve Spurrier said Tuesday afternoon during his weekly press conference.
One of the new starters is already known – freshman Hutch Eckerson will fill Gurminder Thind's spot at left tackle. Thind suffered a sprained right foot in the 18-0 loss to Georgia but the way Spurrier has been talking the last few days would have been replaced irregardless.
After that, it's anybody's guess.
Probably one or two additional positions along the offensive line will have new starters, including, most likely, left guard. Converted defensive tackle Matt Raysor, freshman Garrett Anderson and former walk-on Seth Emerson are in the mix.
"Most of our problems come down to blocking," Spurrier said Tuesday. "If you're a pretty good offense, you usually block pretty well."
Clearly, the biggest question surrounding the Gamecocks' offense is who will call the signals at quarterback in Saturday's nonconference contest against Wofford (7 p.m., pay-per-view).
Spurrier has refused to show his hand this week, hoping to force the Terriers' defensive coaches to prepare for more than one quarterback.
Blake Mitchell had respectable numbers (16-for-22, 156 yards) in the loss to Georgia but failed to generate any points or operate the offense at the tempo desired by Spurrier. He left the game in the fourth quarter with a bruised right hand and was replaced by freshman Chris Smelley.
Mitchell practiced Monday and should be able to play Saturday if he's called upon.
While Mitchell and Smelley remain USC's top two quarterbacks, Spurrier reiterated Tuesday they still have a package for Syvelle Newton.
Mitchell has completed 63.6 percent of his passes (28-for-44) through the first two games but has no touchdown passes. Worse, USC is ranked 110th out of 119 Div. I-A schools in scoring offense (7.5 ppg) and rushing offense (58.0 ypg), and ranked 99th in total offense (264.5 ypg).
Those are statistics Spurrier is not familiar with.
Another possible change could come at running back, where sophomore Mike Davis has been victimized by the poor blocking up front. He has just 23 yards rushing on 13 carries through two games, while junior Cory Boyd leads the team in rushing with 110 yards and is second in receptions with nine.
"Cory had some good runs against Mississippi State," Spurrier said. "I don't know what we did last week running wise. We thought we could bang it in on the goal line (against Georgia) and Cory sort of ran into a wall right there. He stood up and got stuffed at the point we were trying to get the ball in. (The running backs) need more carries and more room. We need to stay on the field. We can't stay on the field very well."
The offense, though, does not hold a patent on lineup changes. The defense could get a younger, fresher, more vibrant look this weekend with several true freshman expected to see greater playing time.
Those freshmen include defensive end Eric Norwood (second in tackles against Georgia with five), linebacker Rodney Paulk and the surprising trio of freshman defensive backs – Captain Munnerlyn, Emanuel Cook and Darian Stewart.
"We're still trying to figure out who our best players are," Spurrier said. "Sometimes you can go through practices and practices, and you think you know who your best guys are. And then they turn on the lights and put you on television, with 80,000 in the stands. Sometimes, those guys aren't your best players. We're still trying to give guys an opportunity that deserve a shot."
Besides those personnel changes, defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix must find a replacement for USC's best defensive tackle Marque hall, who suffered a season-ending ACL injury in the second quarter of the loss to Georgia.
It may take three players to fill Hall's role of plugging holes inside – redshirt freshman Lemuel Jeanpierre, junior Stanley Doughty and JUCO transfer Joel Reaves.
Spurrier doesn't intend to just change players on offense either. The systematic way he attacks a defense could alter, too.
"There could be some scheme changes," Spurrier said. "We have to do something to try to create more offense, create getting the ball toward Sidney and the other receivers and some big gains. We don't want to divulge all of our new plans, but we will be a different looking offense. I don't know what it's going to resemble. It'll be a little bit different. Hopefully, we can give our fans something to yell about."
The most glaring weakness against Georgia was the red zone offense. USC failed to score a single point in its three chances inside the 20-yard line. Twice the Gamecocks got as close as the 2-yard line. The first time, USC tried to punch it in on the ground but the offensive line got stood up and the Blake Mitchell ended up fumbling into the end zone on a fourth-down quarterback sneak.
The second opportunity came in the fourth quarter with Chris Smelley at quarterback. This time, USC tried to throw the ball but a pair of passes fell incomplete.
"Good teams can score second-and-goal from the 2 with three cracks and we couldn't do it," Spurrier said. "So the next time we got down there on the 2-yard line, we tried to throw it in. We couldn't do that, either. So we're re-evaluating everything and trying to do some things differently around here.
"I'm embarrassed about the way we played last game. We're not that bad a team, but we're not very good right now, especially on offense. We're going to try to get better."
With the Div. I-AA Wofford Terriers coming to Williams-Brice Stadium Saturday for a 7 p.m. clash, this could be a good weekend for the offense to begin getting healthy.
Wofford surrendered 41 points and 510 yards of total offense in a 41-38 loss to Coastal Carolina last Saturday in Spartanburg. Nonetheless, Spurrier believes the Terrier's defense is better than the numbers indicate after watching film of their first two games and will offer his struggling offense a challenge.
"Wofford is a very good team. I'm very impressed watching them on tape," Spurrier said. "I've heard they've won more games, they've got the best winning percentage in the Southern Conference the last three or four years, something like that. So they know what they're doing. Coach Ayers and his staff have a plan that's very fundamentally sound defensively. They don't make a lot of mistakes on defense. They force you to beat them."
Spurrier insisted Tuesday the Gamecocks are taking the Terriers, who beat South Carolina State in their season opener, seriously and will come out for the opening kickoff with their game faces on.
"I don't really look at them as a I-AA or a Division I team. I look at them as another opponent on our schedule," Spurrier said. "We play 12 teams and we try to get ready to play our best each time out. I look at them as another team that's trying to kick our tails. We understand it would be huge for Wofford to beat us or Clemson. And if they beat us, I guarantee you we had no excuses. They're just better than us. That's all I would say because we're going to be ready to play. Our team will be ready to play the best we can."
The Terriers, though, have struggled defending the pass this season. Coastal Carolina threw for 288 yards last Saturday, including a 45-yarder with 2:35 left for the game-winner.
The depleted secondary is missing both starting cornerbacks, which forced them to move starting wide receiver Brandon Berry over to the defensive backfield last Saturday. Two of Wofford's top defensive ends will miss the game, as well.
"I'd love to think that we can make a bunch of yards on the offense, Spurrier said. "But I don't know until we go do it. We're sort of an unknown offensive group right now. Coastal made some plays on them. They made some big plays. They hit a jump-ball streak at the end of the game to win it."
Considering how poorly USC has played on offense this year, Wofford coach Mike Ayers is expecting little sympathy from Spurrier.
"It's not their job to say, 'Well, Wofford is beat-up. Let's choke it back a bit,'" Ayers said. "That's not going to happen. We understand that we're behind on the measuring stick and the scale. We don't have the best matchups in height, weight and speed. But we will prepare this week and go down there and do our very best."
Offensively, of course, Wofford is best known for an elaborate option running attack that can confuse even the best defenses. The Terriers are averaging 284.0 rushing yards per game in 2006, and 5.4 yards per carry.
"They run the ball extremely well, (with an) option-type attack that will probably be the only offense we see like that this year," Spurrier said. "Our defensive coaches have put in a little extra time trying to figure out all the assignments to stop the option running game. Anyway, it should be a heckuva game."
http://southcarolina.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=582654
That's because USC intends to employ as many as four to seven new offensive starters against the Terriers, head coach Steve Spurrier said Tuesday afternoon during his weekly press conference.
One of the new starters is already known – freshman Hutch Eckerson will fill Gurminder Thind's spot at left tackle. Thind suffered a sprained right foot in the 18-0 loss to Georgia but the way Spurrier has been talking the last few days would have been replaced irregardless.
After that, it's anybody's guess.
Probably one or two additional positions along the offensive line will have new starters, including, most likely, left guard. Converted defensive tackle Matt Raysor, freshman Garrett Anderson and former walk-on Seth Emerson are in the mix.
"Most of our problems come down to blocking," Spurrier said Tuesday. "If you're a pretty good offense, you usually block pretty well."
Clearly, the biggest question surrounding the Gamecocks' offense is who will call the signals at quarterback in Saturday's nonconference contest against Wofford (7 p.m., pay-per-view).
Spurrier has refused to show his hand this week, hoping to force the Terriers' defensive coaches to prepare for more than one quarterback.
Blake Mitchell had respectable numbers (16-for-22, 156 yards) in the loss to Georgia but failed to generate any points or operate the offense at the tempo desired by Spurrier. He left the game in the fourth quarter with a bruised right hand and was replaced by freshman Chris Smelley.
Mitchell practiced Monday and should be able to play Saturday if he's called upon.
While Mitchell and Smelley remain USC's top two quarterbacks, Spurrier reiterated Tuesday they still have a package for Syvelle Newton.
Mitchell has completed 63.6 percent of his passes (28-for-44) through the first two games but has no touchdown passes. Worse, USC is ranked 110th out of 119 Div. I-A schools in scoring offense (7.5 ppg) and rushing offense (58.0 ypg), and ranked 99th in total offense (264.5 ypg).
Those are statistics Spurrier is not familiar with.
Another possible change could come at running back, where sophomore Mike Davis has been victimized by the poor blocking up front. He has just 23 yards rushing on 13 carries through two games, while junior Cory Boyd leads the team in rushing with 110 yards and is second in receptions with nine.
"Cory had some good runs against Mississippi State," Spurrier said. "I don't know what we did last week running wise. We thought we could bang it in on the goal line (against Georgia) and Cory sort of ran into a wall right there. He stood up and got stuffed at the point we were trying to get the ball in. (The running backs) need more carries and more room. We need to stay on the field. We can't stay on the field very well."
The offense, though, does not hold a patent on lineup changes. The defense could get a younger, fresher, more vibrant look this weekend with several true freshman expected to see greater playing time.
Those freshmen include defensive end Eric Norwood (second in tackles against Georgia with five), linebacker Rodney Paulk and the surprising trio of freshman defensive backs – Captain Munnerlyn, Emanuel Cook and Darian Stewart.
"We're still trying to figure out who our best players are," Spurrier said. "Sometimes you can go through practices and practices, and you think you know who your best guys are. And then they turn on the lights and put you on television, with 80,000 in the stands. Sometimes, those guys aren't your best players. We're still trying to give guys an opportunity that deserve a shot."
Besides those personnel changes, defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix must find a replacement for USC's best defensive tackle Marque hall, who suffered a season-ending ACL injury in the second quarter of the loss to Georgia.
It may take three players to fill Hall's role of plugging holes inside – redshirt freshman Lemuel Jeanpierre, junior Stanley Doughty and JUCO transfer Joel Reaves.
Spurrier doesn't intend to just change players on offense either. The systematic way he attacks a defense could alter, too.
"There could be some scheme changes," Spurrier said. "We have to do something to try to create more offense, create getting the ball toward Sidney and the other receivers and some big gains. We don't want to divulge all of our new plans, but we will be a different looking offense. I don't know what it's going to resemble. It'll be a little bit different. Hopefully, we can give our fans something to yell about."
The most glaring weakness against Georgia was the red zone offense. USC failed to score a single point in its three chances inside the 20-yard line. Twice the Gamecocks got as close as the 2-yard line. The first time, USC tried to punch it in on the ground but the offensive line got stood up and the Blake Mitchell ended up fumbling into the end zone on a fourth-down quarterback sneak.
The second opportunity came in the fourth quarter with Chris Smelley at quarterback. This time, USC tried to throw the ball but a pair of passes fell incomplete.
"Good teams can score second-and-goal from the 2 with three cracks and we couldn't do it," Spurrier said. "So the next time we got down there on the 2-yard line, we tried to throw it in. We couldn't do that, either. So we're re-evaluating everything and trying to do some things differently around here.
"I'm embarrassed about the way we played last game. We're not that bad a team, but we're not very good right now, especially on offense. We're going to try to get better."
With the Div. I-AA Wofford Terriers coming to Williams-Brice Stadium Saturday for a 7 p.m. clash, this could be a good weekend for the offense to begin getting healthy.
Wofford surrendered 41 points and 510 yards of total offense in a 41-38 loss to Coastal Carolina last Saturday in Spartanburg. Nonetheless, Spurrier believes the Terrier's defense is better than the numbers indicate after watching film of their first two games and will offer his struggling offense a challenge.
"Wofford is a very good team. I'm very impressed watching them on tape," Spurrier said. "I've heard they've won more games, they've got the best winning percentage in the Southern Conference the last three or four years, something like that. So they know what they're doing. Coach Ayers and his staff have a plan that's very fundamentally sound defensively. They don't make a lot of mistakes on defense. They force you to beat them."
Spurrier insisted Tuesday the Gamecocks are taking the Terriers, who beat South Carolina State in their season opener, seriously and will come out for the opening kickoff with their game faces on.
"I don't really look at them as a I-AA or a Division I team. I look at them as another opponent on our schedule," Spurrier said. "We play 12 teams and we try to get ready to play our best each time out. I look at them as another team that's trying to kick our tails. We understand it would be huge for Wofford to beat us or Clemson. And if they beat us, I guarantee you we had no excuses. They're just better than us. That's all I would say because we're going to be ready to play. Our team will be ready to play the best we can."
The Terriers, though, have struggled defending the pass this season. Coastal Carolina threw for 288 yards last Saturday, including a 45-yarder with 2:35 left for the game-winner.
The depleted secondary is missing both starting cornerbacks, which forced them to move starting wide receiver Brandon Berry over to the defensive backfield last Saturday. Two of Wofford's top defensive ends will miss the game, as well.
"I'd love to think that we can make a bunch of yards on the offense, Spurrier said. "But I don't know until we go do it. We're sort of an unknown offensive group right now. Coastal made some plays on them. They made some big plays. They hit a jump-ball streak at the end of the game to win it."
Considering how poorly USC has played on offense this year, Wofford coach Mike Ayers is expecting little sympathy from Spurrier.
"It's not their job to say, 'Well, Wofford is beat-up. Let's choke it back a bit,'" Ayers said. "That's not going to happen. We understand that we're behind on the measuring stick and the scale. We don't have the best matchups in height, weight and speed. But we will prepare this week and go down there and do our very best."
Offensively, of course, Wofford is best known for an elaborate option running attack that can confuse even the best defenses. The Terriers are averaging 284.0 rushing yards per game in 2006, and 5.4 yards per carry.
"They run the ball extremely well, (with an) option-type attack that will probably be the only offense we see like that this year," Spurrier said. "Our defensive coaches have put in a little extra time trying to figure out all the assignments to stop the option running game. Anyway, it should be a heckuva game."
http://southcarolina.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=582654