Can Will Muschamp pick out a good player just by off-field work?

A football player can do it all correctly.

He can answer every question right in film review. He can dominate the meetings. He can run the drills right. And there’s still no guarantee it all comes together on the field.

This is a fact South Carolina coach Will Muschamp knows well.

“You don’t play, you don’t know,” Muschamp said. “I don’t have any idea until the guy goes and plays. I thought Jake (Bentley) would play well. I didn’t know until he actually executed and played.”

Bentley last year spent the first half of his freshman season as a redshirt candidate. He was then pressed into action and showed well. And it doesn’t just apply to quarterbacks.

“I’d say it’s all positions,” Muschamp said, “how the guys play when the lights turn on and when it really counts.”

Man missing

South Carolina losing linebacker Bryson Allen-Williams means the departure of one of the team’s top pass rushers, a strong tackler and a solid player in shorter pass coverage.

But he brings a less tangible impact to USC’s defense.

“There’s a calming aspect to me as much as anything,” Muschamp said, “when you have a guy that’s been there.”

That’s been helpful for a range of young defenders, and the coach singled out one as an example.

“You have a guy like Sherrod Greene on the field, who for the first time is experiencing a lot of new,” Muschamp said. “Bryson is telling him, ‘It’s going to be all right, we’re good,’ helping him communicate.”

Thompson’s homecoming

A trip to Texas means going home for Gamecocks linebacker Eldridge Thompson.

Kind of.

The junior college transfer actually grew up in Memphis, Tenn., but his family moved to Houston and he lived there between leaving JUCO and coming to Columbia. With the game two hours away, he’s already busy with a crowd trying to get to the game.

“Right now, I’d say 14,” Thompson said. “As of right now. It’s only Tuesday.”

This story was originally published September 27, 2017 at 9:24 AM with the headline "Can Will Muschamp pick out a good player just by off-field work?."