Thumbs up, thumbs down: South Carolina vs. Coastal Carolina

Thumbs up

The offense

USC fans were promised new. The Gamecocks were productive. The 49 points in a win against Coastal were the most since scoring 70 against Coastal in 2013. The 557 yards weren’t bad either, and the backups played most of the fourth quarter.

Rico back

The back Will Muschamp challenged delivered. Rico Dowdle, who missed the majority of the 2017 season, broke off 105 yards on 15 carries and added a 22-yard touchdown catch on a screen for good measure.

Bryson Allen-Williams in his return

A versatile cog in USC’s defense, Allen-Williams didn’t get quite the fanfare of the likes of Deebo Samuel and Rico Dowdle when he missed most of last season. In his first action since last September, he made four tackles, three for loss, with a sack and a hurry.

Jake Bentley

In his first day at the helm of the new offense, he went 22-for-29 for 250 yards and a career-high four touchdowns. That included a one-minute drive at the end of the first half where he led his team 76 yards in five plays.

Thumbs down

Some tackling issues

Option teams are always going to be an issue. They make things difficult, deciding to pass when the defense commits to the run. Still, there were some players in position to make plays who couldn’t make them. It’s something to clean up.

Wonnum injury

There was a scary moment when Gamecocks defensive lineman D.J. Wonnum suffered an apparent ankle injury and exited the game. Afterward, Muschamp said it was just a sprain and he should be fine.

Attendance

It was supremely hot, and a noon opener against a Sun Belt team barely out of FCS. That was going to hurt attendance. The official number of 75,126 was USC’s lowest for a home opener since 2010, and it looked to be generous given the number of fans in the stands.

Few really big plays

The Gamecocks had perhaps their most efficient offensive day in a long time. They also didn’t break a play longer than 29 yards. It’s not a deal breaker, but worth making note of against a Sun Belt team.

This story was originally published September 1, 2018 at 4:33 PM.