Jake Bentley injury could be season-ending, Muschamp says

Just about all the reporting had come out on Monday. All that was left was for Will Muschamp to confirm the news on Jake Bentley and Ryan Hilinski.

And he did just that Tuesday.

The Gamecocks could be without Bentley for as little as six weeks or as long as the whole season, the coach said. The injury was a mid-foot sprain, a lisfranc injury. They’re still going through testing, and if surgery is needed, Bentley will be done for the year. If not, he could be back in six-eight weeks.

“He’s still under medical evaluation,” Muschamp said. “We’ll know more in the latter part of the week exactly whether he needs surgery.

“I don’t want to comment much further than that right now.”

That means the four-star freshman Hilinski is headed into the lineup to make his first career start.

Hilinski will be the second non-Bentley quarterback to start for USC since the Georgia game in 2016. Michael Scarnecchia started against Missouri last season.

Bentley got hurt in the midst of one of the worst performances of his career, a 142-yard, two-interception outing. Muschamp said it happened when he was landed on the final play of the game. He told the trainers he was sore, and by the next morning, Muschamp was told it would be an issue.

“It’s hard,” Muschamp said. “The guy puts everything into being the quarterback here at South Carolina. And it’s very difficult. He was at practice today. He wants to be in the meetings and wants to be involved to help Ryan and Dekereon and to carry on and be a leader, and that’s who he is. That’s the kind of person he is, that’s how he was raised, and so that’s why he will be successful in life.”

The staff hasn’t discussed any possibility of a redshirt with Bentley.

Several teammates spoke about losing their senior leader.

Running back Rico Dowdle: “It’s devastating. I hate it for him.”

Center Donell Stanley: “It was a sad thing. On Sunday, I called him and he told me the diagnosis and everything like that. ... I’ve been in his shoes”

The news turns the attention toward Hilinski, an Elite 11 passer and the No. 64 player in the country in his recruiting class per the 247 composite rankings. The 6-foot-4, 230-pounder is a pro-style passer who throws an accurate ball.

“He’s a great quarterback,” sophomore cornerback Israel Mukuamu said. “Just excited for him to play.”

Hilinski was a big get for the staff and quarterbacks coach Dan Werner. He arrived on campus in January off a prep career that saw him deal with some of the best high school teams in the country.

He threw for more than 2,700 yards last season, leading an injury-ravaged squad to the playoffs. The year before, he had more than 3,700 yards and connected on almost 70% of his passes.

“I think he’s done a really nice job of learning the offense and spending the time he’s got to spend, whether it’s in the film room or the weight room or the practice field,” Muschamp said. “I’m excited about Ryan. He’s got a lot of arm talent, a lot of ability. And I think he’ll play extremely well. We got a lot of confidence in him and the job he’ll do on Saturday.”

South Carolina hasn’t started a true freshman since 2016, when Brandon McIlwian took the starting job in the first game, was benched after a trio of starts and Bentley took over the rest of the way.

Other freshman passers to start for USC recently include Lorenzo Nunez and Stephen Garcia, who had to wait out a redshirt year.

Teammates described Hilinski as calm and laid back, maybe not the most vocal, but a presence just the same.

Since arriving on campus, Hilinski was competing with Dakereon Joyner for the chance to back up Bentley. Although the pair were both after the same thing, which Hilinski eventually won, Joyner still spoke highly of the player he’s now backing up

“The guy hasn’t changed,” Joyner said. “He’s been the same guy since he got here. He hasn’t changed at all.”

This story was originally published September 3, 2019 at 12:35 PM.