Dec. 18, 2011

The University of South Carolina football team returned to the Bluff Road practice fields Sunday afternoon. It was the squad’s second practice session in preparation for the 2012 Capital One Bowl, which will pit the 10-2 Gamecocks against the 9-3 Nebraska Cornhuskers on Monday, January 2 in Orlando, Fla.

The Gamecocks were in full pads on Sunday as they worked out for about two hours. The team is scheduled to practice seven more times before breaking for the Christmas holiday on December 23.

Several players did not practice on Sunday, including Alshon Jeffery (hand), C.C. Whitlock (knee), D.J. Swearinger (foot) and Terrence Campbell (leg). Kelcy Quarles limped off the practice field with a lower leg injury. It was not immediately known how serious the injury was.

“Alshon’s been out here spectating a little bit,” said Head Coach Steve Spurrier. “He’s been running with the guys. He could catch one-handed, but should be ready for the bowl game. D.J. has that foot that they’d like him to stay off of. Terrence Campbell is not practicing this week. Hopefully when we get to Orlando they can get in shape a little bit.”

Bruce Ellington was not at practice on Sunday after playing in the basketball game against Ohio State on Saturday. “I think Bruce is supposed to come around tomorrow, but we’ve got to wait and see. We’ve pretty much left it up to him. If he’s going to play some, he needs to get out here and get the game plan down. I think he’s supposed to be here most of the time.”

The Gamecocks are a coach down as they have yet to replace Jay Graham, who took a position at his alma mater. “Right now, myself and Tommy Galt are sort of handling the running backs and the tight ends. They are doing well. We’re not changing a lot of things we do so hopefully we can get those positions ready to go against Nebraska. Marcus (Lattimore) hasn’t been out here as much as we thought, but he’ll be around a little bit more.”

Coach Spurrier may also be searching for a defensive coach as Ellis Johnson remains in the mix for the head coaching position at Southern Miss. “You’ll have to ask Ellis about that,” said Spurrier. “From what I’ve heard, he’s got a good shot at it. We wait and see how it plays out.”

The team will be on the “Proving Grounds” again on Monday, with two practices scheduled, the first at 10:15 am and the second at 4 pm. All practices are closed.