Gamecocks Begin Spring Drills Wednesday

2020 SPRING PREVIEW

With spring in the air, it’s time to turn the page on South Carolina Football. The squad looks to put the disappointing 2019 season in its collective rearview mirror and begin preparations for 2020 and another gauntlet, known as SEC Football.

After a 4-8 campaign, change was inevitable, and fifth-year head coach Will Muschamp has aggressively addressed that in the off-season, revamping much of his coaching staff. Only three coaches, offensive line coach Eric Wolford, outside linebackers coach Mike Peterson and defensive coordinator/defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson, will return in the same roles as a season ago.

The biggest changes will occur on the offensive side of the ball, where Coach Muschamp has brought in former Colorado State head coach Mike Bobo to coordinate the attack and mentor the quarterbacks. Bobo has a long track record of success in the SEC and will use the spring to implement his vernacular and system. Bobo brought Joe Cox along with him from Fort Collins. Cox, who is originally from Charlotte, played at Georgia, and considered an up-and-comer in the profession, will be in charge of the Gamecock tight ends. Bobby Bentley shifts back to direct the running backs, a position he held from 2016-18, before becoming the tight ends coach a year ago. Bryan McClendon returns as the wide receivers coach.

On the defensive side, veteran SEC legend Tracy Rocker joins the staff as the defensive line coach, while former Gamecock captain Rod Wilson returns to Columbia as the linebackers coach. Wilson, a Cross, S.C. native who captained the 2004 Gamecocks, was most recently with the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs.

The Gamecocks also had a changing of the guard with their special teams units, as Kyle Krantz, who served as an assistant in that area for the past two years, takes over as the coordinator. Krantz will continue to assist with the Carolina secondary as well.

Coach Muschamp also made changes in some off-the-field positions, the most notable coming in the weight room, where an entirely new staff, under the direction of Paul Jackson, has taken over. Jackson, who most recently worked at Ole Miss, will be joined by Scott Salwasser, Anthony Henderson, Julian Whitehead and Jordan Sims. Drew Hughes re-unites with Coach Muschamp as the Director of Player Personnel. The two previously worked together for a year at Florida. Gamecock Great Connor Shaw returns to Columbia as the Director of Football Student-Athlete Development.

On the field, the Gamecocks return 45 letterwinners, including 13 starters, six on both sides of the ball, along with their placekicker from 2019. Carolina returns just 20 percent of its rushing yards, 95 percent of its passing yards and 43 percent of its receiving yards, along with six of its top eight tacklers from a year ago.

Although it would be hard to match the difficulty of last year’s regular-season schedule, which proved to be the nation’s toughest, another challenging slate awaits the Gamecocks in 2020.

The season kicks off with a home game against in-state rival Coastal Carolina on Saturday, Sept. 5. The Gamecocks will host East Carolina the following week, giving them two non-conference home games to open the season for the first time since 2003. The season-opening three-game homestand concludes on Sept. 19 when Carolina hosts Missouri in the SEC lid-lifter. The Mizzou contest also begins a stretch of eight-consecutive SEC contests for the Gamecocks.

The Gamecocks head out on the road for the first time in the 2020 campaign with a pair of SEC contests at Kentucky on Sept. 26 and at Florida on Oct. 3. Carolina returns home on Oct. 10 to host Tennessee then, after the lone off week of the season, plays host to Texas A&M, before wrapping up the month of October at Vanderbilt on Halloween.

No one in the country will have a tougher November slate than South Carolina, as the Gamecocks will face three teams that finished in the top four in the final 2019 national polls. First up is a Nov. 7 date with the Georgia Bulldogs. The Dawgs will be looking for revenge after Carolina upset the third-ranked team in the country in Athens a year ago. The Gamecocks will travel to Baton Rouge and Death Valley to face the defending national champion LSU Tigers on Nov. 14. The FCS Wofford Terriers will provide the competition in the home finale on Nov. 21, while the 2020 regular season comes to a close in Clemson’s Memorial Stadium on Nov. 28 when the Gamecocks and Tigers renew their series for the 118th time.

OFFENSE

New offensive coordinator Mike Bobo was brought in to reinvigorate an offense that struggled to put points on the board a season ago. Six starters return including four offensive linemen in left tackle Sadarius Hutcherson, left guard Jordan Rhodes, right guard Jovaughn Gwyn and right tackle Dylan Wonnum. While on paper the center position is the only open spot heading into the spring, offensive line coach Eric Wolford has recruited well and will look to get his best five on the field. Sophomore quarterback Ryan Hilinski returns as the front-runner to direct the offense. He gained valuable experience a year ago after being forced into unexpected early duty following a season-ending injury to Jake Bentley, and looks to take the next step in his development. The running back room has undergone a massive overhaul following the graduation of Rico Dowdle, Tavien Feaster and Mon Denson and the competition will be fierce this spring. Competition at tight end is open as well following the graduation and Kyle Markway and a knee injury to Nick Muse, which will keep him sidelined this spring. Junior Shi Smith is a returning starter at wide receiver and figures to hold one of those positions, but there are plenty of open slots in the receiving corps for someone to step up as the Gamecocks look to replace the school’s all-time leading receiver in Bryan Edwards.

DEFENSE

The Gamecock defense will have a different look in 2020, especially along the defensive line, where the losses of All-American Javon Kinlaw,  standout Buck D.J. Wonnum, and glue-guy Kobe Smith will be felt. The lone returnee up front is Aaron Sterling, who is coming off a season in which he logged 10.0 tackles for loss and 6.0 sacks. However, 2018 starter Keir Thomas returns after being sidelined for much of the 2019 season and Coach Muschamp and his staff have recruited well with several talented players ready to fill those big shoes, including 2019 SEC All-Freshman selection Zacch Pickens. The Gamecocks will miss the leadership of three-year starter T.J. Brunson at linebacker, but leading tackler Ernest Jones and Sherrod Greene, who came on strong as the season progressed last year, are two returning starters at the position. The Gamecocks are blessed with a pair of returning starters at cornerback in Jaycee Horn and Israel Mukuamu, whom some believe are as good of tandem as any in the country. R.J. Roderick is a returning starter at safety, while Jammie Robinson was a Freshman All-SEC selection at nickel and could play safety as well.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kyle Krantz takes over as the Gamecocks’ special teams coordinator. Many of the key positions are wide open entering the spring. One that is not is at placekicker, which is in the capable hands (and foot) of senior Parker White. White has improved each season and is almost automatic from inside 40 yards. Krantz has a huge hole to fill at punter following the graduation of school record-holder Joseph Charlton. Those duties may not be decided until the fall. That may be the case as well at long snapper, holder, kickoff specialist and punt returner, where the Gamecocks graduated Max Oliveira, Joseph Charlton, Will Tommie and Bryan Edwards, respectively. Shi Smith and Xavier Legette both have experience at kickoff return and figure to get the first shot there.