What Muschamp thought of first action for Gamecocks QBs Joyner, Urich
In the fourth quarter against Chattanooga, South Carolina football coach Will Muschamp told offensive coordinator Bryan McClendon to not switch things to clock-killing mode.
The Gamecocks were up by 46 points, but they had another goal in mind. Giving reserve quarterbacks Dakereon Joyner and Jay Urich their first real chance.
“I told B-Mac, they may get mad, but we’re going to run our offense,” Muschamp said. “Throw the ball. Let Jay and Dakereon throw it. I know it was late, but if we get these guys an opportunity to go play, let’s let them go play.”
The pair of young athletic signal callers had never taken snaps in live games before. They went into it with a piece of advice from their starter.
“One thing that I told them was just, cherish the moment,” quarterback Jake Bentley said. “You only get one time of getting out there for the first time.”
Joyner, a four-star freshman and former South Carolina Mr. Football, made his long-awaited debut with 10:38 left in the fourth. Urich got to play on the final three snaps. Bentley had taken things to the fourth quarter. Michael Scarnecchia got one drive on his senior night, and then the kids took over.
All told, the pair ran or threw the ball on 11 of 12 offensive plays while they were in there. Both are natural scramblers, and that was on display.
“It’s awesome to see them get in there, their hard work paying off and getting to experience what it’s like to be on the field,” Bentley said. “I thought they did some good things, I thought they were playing fast. Taking off and running is part of it. That’s making fast decisions and not holding onto the ball. They were able to move the ball and I thought they did some really good things.”
Joyner, who won’t lose his redshirt because of the NCAA’s new four-game rule, hit 1 of 2 passes for 1 yards, but also ran for 24 on three carries, including a pair of 11-yard runs. Urich connected with redshirt freshman tight end Will Register for a 9-yard pass (Register’s first career catch in his first career game), and broke a 14-yard scramble.
Joyner got particular attention as one of the top recruits in the current freshman class. He’s been considered a threat with the ball in his hands by several experts, plus the defense that has to match him on scout team.
“He’s dangerous in space,” middle linebacker T.J. Brunson said. “He’s a really shifty guy. He knows how to make you miss. He’s definitely given us really good looks throughout the season, day-in and day out. Just seeing it on the field, it isn’t surprising.”
South Carolina’s quarterback situation will shift this offseason. Scarnecchia, a steady backup who won the Missouri game, is out of eligibility and off to law school. There’s a chance Bentley goes pro, but after some early struggles, that’s a big question. Four-star Ryan Hilinski is coming in, but he has publicly said he expects to redshirt if Bentley is still around.
And that leaves Urich and Joyner, young interesting passers set to find a spot on the new depth chart, getting their first experience under the Williams-Brice lights.
“We need to give them live snaps in front of people,” Muschamp said.”The game will continue to slow down for both guys. Wish we could’ve gotten them both more snaps. But it’s exciting to get them out there.”