Sept. 22, 2003

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South Carolina (3-1, 0-1) resumes SEC play and travels to Knoxville to meet No. 8 Tennessee (3-0, 1-0) this Saturday. Kickoff at Neyland Stadium is slated for 7:45 p.m. ET with a national television audience on ESPN. Head coach Lou Holtz met with the media Monday to review the Gamecocks’ 42-10 win over UAB and preview this week’s match-up with the Volunteers and offered the following comments:

(on the injuries)
“Preston Thorne and Chad Walker are out the year. There is some doubt whether they will ever be able to play again. Chad Walker had a dislocated kneecap and had some cartilage was pulled off with it. Preston Thorne will have a very serious surgery to repair ligament damage. We have some other injuries. Matthew Thomas’ knees are a bit of a problem and we’ll have to see how that works out the rest of the week we have a lot of bangs and bruises, which you expect at this time of the year.”

(on the defense in Saturday’s win over UAB)
“We played in some respects, but we have to play a lot better. Dunta Robinson is playing so well for us. Our safeties, Andrea Gause and Jermaine Harris, played well. Gause made his first start and really stepped in and played a solid game. When Harris came in he was very productive. Those two could start this week at Tennessee, although we do expect Rodriques Wilson back this week. At linebacker, Marcus Lawrence and Jeremiah Garrison both played well. It would really help us if Ricardo Hurley could come back from his ankle injury but we will have to see about that. On the defensive line, George Gause continues to play well and he and Moe Thompson are really playing good football for us.”

(on the offense and special teams in Saturday’s win over UAB)
“You expect Travelle Wharton to play well, which he is, but the big surprise was how well Chris White and Stephen Sene played. It is the first time they got significant playing time and they did some good things. They were really a pleasant surprise. We do expect Jabari Levey and Jonathan Alston back. John Strickland played well. Our receivers played very well. Matthew Thomas made two key blocks on big plays. I thought Dondrial Pinkins performed well. He made a couple of mistakes but overall played well. I thought our punting game was good but our kickoff coverage leaves a lot to be desired. That’s all I wish to discuss about the kicking game.”

(on playing at Tennessee)
“We didn’t play well in our first road game at Georgia and now we have to go up to Tennessee and will have to play very well. I don’t know what to expect. This week will be difficult for us at Tennessee. Beating Florida on the road was impressive. They are ranked No. 8 in the country, but are in the top five in scoring defense and rush defense, only allowed 2.0 yards per carry, which is unbelievable when you consider the schedule they have played. Tennessee is one of the top 10 in the nation in rushing offense.”

(on Tennessee)
“Phillip Fulmer is a tremendous coach and Tennessee has had more people go to the NFL than any other school in the last ten years. His record is the best in the SEC over the last ten years and this is really a typical Tennessee team. They have bounced back this year with a vengeance and are really playing well.”

(on Tennessee’s offense)
“They have two running backs, Cedric Houston and Jabari Davis, who are first and fifth in the conference in rushing and the average over 200 yards per game combined. Their offensive line is very good and all about 300 pounds and very athletic. Tennessee always has good receivers and then you go to the quarterback, Casey Clausen, who has hurt us over the years by making some big plays against us. He is an excellent competitor and a fine quarterback.”

(on the Volunteers’ defense and special teams)
“On defense, two of their defensive backs are Jim Thorpe awards finalists and one was the 60-meter indoor track champion, so obviously they have great speed. Their kicker kicked a 51-yarder against Florida and their punter ranks among the top in the country.”