What Steve Taneyhill, other former Gamecocks think of USC’s quarterback situation
Jake Bentley on Nov. 24 threw for 510 yards and five touchdowns as South Carolina hung with the eventual national champions in Death Valley. In the two USC games since, Bentley has thrown for 417 yards, three scores and four interceptions as the Gamecock offense limped through the end of the 2018 season.
In a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately society, Bentley plays the ultimate what-have-you-done-for-me-lately position. Steve Taneyhill can relate to the criticism of Bentley in the Belk Bowl’s aftermath. He was once a Carolina quarterback.
“They always go by their last game,” Taneyhill said. “If our season ends after Clemson, everyone’s feeling completely different. But that second half against Akron and the whole bowl game, it changes how people feel. Because they just remember the last thing they saw.”
Taneyhill, who called signals from 1992-95 in Columbia, is South Carolina’s all-time leader in TD passes and is second in yards. Bentley will likely pass him in both categories this fall. Yet, individual achievement often takes a back seat when discussing Bentley. The rising senior has a 19-13 record as a starter, including a 1-10 mark against ranked teams.
Throw in the addition of touted freshman Ryan Hilinski to the Carolina QB room and the spotlight burns brighter.
Taneyhill, Blake Mitchell and Syvelle Newton were among the former USC QBs to participate in the Gamecock alumni game Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium. That trio then stuck around and watched Bentley, Hillinski and redshirt freshman Dakereon Joyner share reps in the Garnet & Black Spring Game.
In designed limited action, Bentley completed nine of 14 passes for 96 yards and touchdown. Hilinski, a four-star prospect from California, completed 24 of 36 passes for 206 yards. Joyner, a four-star prospect from North Charleston, threw for 185 yards (one TD, one INT) and ran for another 60.
“Jake, my first time watching him throw the ball, I knew he was special,” Newton said. “He’s a special quarterback. Going into his senior year, just to watch how he’s grown through all the years, I think this year’s gonna be special for him. We are fortunate to have two guys that are pushing him. But a lot of times when you have somebody behind you pushing you, it only causes you to go out and execute and do your best.
“And I think Jake has shown us that he can be one of those guys that can go out and execute the game. And that’s what we’re looking for this year.”
When Bentley missed the Missouri game last season because of a knee injury, senior Michael Scarnecchia replaced him, threw for three touchdowns and led the Gamecocks to a wild 37-35 win. Bentley returned and tossed for 17 scores against four picks over USC’s next six games.
“The backup quarterback’s always the most popular guy,” Mitchell said. “It’s tough. You got to stay on top of your game. You have one bad game, somebody’s ready to put the next game in. But you gotta continue to work hard and grind every day. And Jake’s proven he does that.”
When Bentley started as a freshman in 2016, he joined Taneyhill in that club. The mullet-wearing Pennsylvanian guided the Gamecocks to a 5-1 finish in 1992, including a win at Clemson.
Hilinksi is heading to August in a battle with Joyner to be Bentley’s backup.
“My situation was a little different,” said Taneyhill, a ballyhooed prospect who picked the Gamecocks over the likes of Alabama, Florida State and UCLA. “Same type of recruit — big-time, all this hype — but I didn’t really have a guy in front of me like a Jake Bentley.
“I just want the team to win and if there’s somebody to push Jake, competition isn’t bad. ... From what I hear, (Hilinski’s) really shown well, has learned the playbook pretty quick. He’s a fast learner, competitor, from what I hear. But we’ll see.”
Barring a drastic change, Bentley will lead the Gamecocks against North Carolina in the ‘19 season opener.
“He had a great second half of the season last year,” Taneyhill said. “He is a senior. He should be comfortable in the second year of this offense. There’s a lot of similarities with the other years, but, really, the second year of this offense. And I expect big things. And I think we got good guys around him. We didn’t lose much on offense except maybe Deebo (Samuel) and (Zack) Bailey.
“We should be pretty good on offense.”
This story was originally published April 9, 2019 at 10:15 PM.
