While the South Carolina Gamecocks have a relatively favorable schedule for the 2013 season, there are still too many questions to put this team in the driver’s seat of the SEC.
South Carolina finished the 2012 season with a five-game winning streak. The team went 11-2 overall and 6-2 in potentially the best conference in college football; however only seven and five starters are returning for the offense and defense respectively.
Quarterback Connor Shaw will start as the Gamecocks’ leader under center for the 2013 season. Shaw started 11 out of 13 games last season and finished his season with 17 touchdowns, 7 interceptions and led his team to a 33-28 victory over Michigan in the Outback Bowl. Despite coming off an injury-laden past few seasons and recent foot surgery, which caused him to miss spring practices, Shaw is looking forward to his healthy return on the field. While Shaw is named the starter, head coach Steve Spurrier however recognizes that he may have two hot quarterbacks on the roster and has discussed having Shaw split time at the position with QB Dylan Thompson. Thompson started the two games Shaw couldn’t due to injury and proved he has one strong arm, throwing for over 300 yards and three touchdowns in both of his two starts.
Big losses come in the run game. To avoid potential further collegiate injury, running back Marcus Lattimore declared for the 2013 NFL Draft and RB Kenny Miles chose to not return for the Gamecocks’ 2013 season. Although Lattimore is gone, he did face devastating back-to-back knee injuries that cut his 2011 and 2012 seasons short so some may argue the Gamecocks were able to still survive without him. Moving forward, sophomore Mike Davis may just be the key to keep this run game on the up and up. At 5-foot-9, Davis doesn’t necessarily have the height to be an elite back, but he does weigh in at a solid 215-pounds. He has the power to be an explosive back that can cut up the middle and work in sync with South Carolina’s big offensive line.
As for the receiving corps, South Carolina’s two big tight ends, Rory Anderson and Jerell Adams will look to create mismatches against rival defenses and wide receiver Bruce Ellington’s speed will provide Shaw – or Thompson – with opportunities to air the ball out downfield.
Defensively, the Gamecocks’ MVP is 6-foot-6, 274-pound defensive end Jadeveon Clowney. With so many defensive starters gone, Clowney is expected to take on a leadership role for the upcoming season. Can Clowney be the answer to a successful 2013 South Carolina season? His natural speed and power to get off the ball put him in a category all his own. (See: “The Hit” from the 2013 Outback Bowl). The jury may still be out, but hype aside, Clowney is certainly a game changer and playmaker.
Schedule wise, South Carolina’s is favorable. The team doesn’t face any of the elite SEC opponents including Alabama, Texas A&M and LSU (who defeated the Gamecocks 23-21 a year ago) but does still have challenges. These come in games like week two’s matchup on the road against Georgia (even though the Gamecocks won by double digits against the Bulldogs last year) and week eleven’s game against Florida (who rocked South Carolina 44-11 in 2012). South Carolina also finishes their 2013 season with no road games in November.
While its BCS title game chances are minimal, due to the Alabama powerhouse, this could be South Carolina’s best chance to make a run. With Clowney still on the roster, a healthy quarterback, and a schedule that on paper looks to work in their favor, the Gamecocks may be a force to be reckoned with in the 2013 season.
- Hayley Elwood
@hayleyelwood
hayley.projectcfb@gmail.com
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