Why Bryan McClendon expects a big year from Jake Bentley in 2018
South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley has been ahead of schedule since arriving in Columbia.
Bentley left high school a year early to come play for the Gamecocks and was immediately thrown into the fire, starting seven games as a true freshman in 2016.
He went 4-3 as a starter that year and experienced his share of tough moments playing against some of the best defenses in the country, including Florida and Clemson.
Bentley gained a full year of experience last season, leading USC to nine wins, and as one of the more experienced quarterbacks in the conference he should be in for a big season in 2018.
“Jake came in and he had to play really before he was ready,” Gamecocks offensive coordinator Bryan McClendon said earlier this week in Greenville. “Any time a guy that’s played as much ball as he has and knows the important of preparing the right way and the week preparing up to that game, I think that’s something that really, really takes precedent over a lot of different things. No matter what, game experience is what gives guys the most barometer on exactly where you want to be, and he’s had a bunch of that.”
Bentley struggled in his first season in losses at Florida and at Clemson, and the Gamecocks suffered a 24-10 loss at Georgia last year.
But Bentley also now knows what it is like to play at some of the toughest venues in the nation.
“Just having a guy at that position who comes and has played in a bunch of different areas, played in the swamp, played at Clemson, played at the University of Georgia, obviously not just there but we have a great crowd at the University of South Carolina also,” McClendon said. “But he’s played in a bunch of different arenas and knows what it’s like to go there and have to do well. He can be a calming force and never get too high, never get too low as far as situations go and in those arenas.”
In addition to experience Bentley also has a better grasp of the playbook than he ever has before.
McClendon, who is in his first year as South Carolina’s offensive coordinator, asked his quarterback to take another step as far as understanding USC’s offense this offseason.
“The big challenge was making sure that playing that quarterback position he knows not only what he has to do but what everybody on offense has to do and how that affects people on defense and what they’re supposed to do to kind of counteract some of the stuff that we’re going to do,” McClendon said. “He has to learn a bunch just as far as taking a good grasp of everything, and he’s done that. Now it’s just time to take it to the next level and going out there and perfecting game plans and going out there and playing well on Saturdays.”
This story was originally published July 26, 2018 at 1:51 PM.