Will Muschamp goes off on ‘dumb rule’ that could have cost South Carolina

The call had South Carolina coach Will Muschamp furious. Even after the game.

Gamecocks defensive tackle Taylor Stallworth had his helmet pulled off early in the third quarter of a tight game. He kept playing. The result was a flag, an illegal participation call that wiped out a third-down sack.

Muschamp wasn’t having it.

“We say it’s about player safety. You know what, if a player decides he wants to stick his face in there without his helmet on, that’s his judgment,” Muschamp said. “That’s what Will Muschamp would do. I’d stick my face in the fire every single time, and why you get penalized for that is ridiculous. Now, if you’re soft, and you don’t want to stick your face in there, that’s your decision.

“It ought to be the player’s decision. It is a dumb rule. You said it, I didn’t.”

Stallworth said he wasn’t clear about the call when it first happened. First, he was told he’d knocked the quarterback’s helmet off. Then he learned getting his helmet knocked off and not pulling back was on him.

“I didn’t know,” Stallworth said. “I was as surprised as y’all were.”

So what was the response from Stallworth, who also got his ankle rolled but played through?

“That’s crazy,” Stallworth said. “I’m like, ‘What?’ ”

This story was originally published October 14, 2017 at 4:52 PM.