How Jake Bentley was ‘one of the biggest things’ in Gamecocks’ big win
Just before kickoff on Saturday, the two quarterbacks met near the sideline, around the 20-yard line of Williams-Brice Stadium — Ryan Hilinski with his helmet on and raring to go, and Jake Bentley wheeling around on a scooter.
Bentley, the senior, embraced Hilinski, the freshman, and gave him a few final words of advice. And then they were off, Hilinski to make his first career start leading South Carolina to a 72-10 record-breaking win over Charleston Southern, and Bentley to watch from the sidelines.
With Bentley staring down a potential season-ending injury to his foot and Hilinski’s impressive performance against CSU, not to mention a strong showing from backup Dakereon Joyner, the Gamecocks’ quarterback room is in a unique spot at the moment, far different than what everyone expected just a few weeks ago.
But all that change hasn’t fazed Bentley, according to coach Will Muschamp. After injuring his foot against North Carolina, he’s been an “awesome” influence in the locker room, Muschamp said.
“He’s been a practice every single day, and he’s been in every single quarterback meeting and meeting extra with Ryan and Dakereon both,” Muschamp said. “But that’s who Jake is. He’s a great Gamecock. It’s just very unfortunate his situation and what’s transpired. But as he would tell you, just like I would, man down, man up. And he understands that process in this game. It’s a very unfair game at times, but that’s the way it is. I hurt for him, but I appreciate the way he’s handled it.”
Muschamp’s comments echo what Bentley’s teammates said about him earlier in the week as the Gamecocks prepared for the Buccaneers. And Joyner confirmed that Bentley’s help in the run-up to Saturday’s game was crucial.
“I think that was one of the biggest things coming into this. Because the thing is, he had confidence in us, even before this all played out,” Joyner said. “You know, Jake is a great guy. He’s a great leader. But just to see him handling the situation well, I commend him. It played a huge factor. He believed in us. He had confidence in us and then we took that around.”
Hilinski finished Saturday with 282 yards, three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing) and one interception, on 24-for-30 passing. Joyner completed his only pass attempt for no gain, ran the ball four times for 53 yards and one touchdown and caught one pass for 12 yards.
Muschamp said on Saturday Bentley has received a second opinion on his Lisfranc injury but declined to elaborate, adding that he wanted to talk with Bentley and his father, coach Bobby Bentley, before announcing a course of action.
