South Carolina-Texas A&M report card: A scattershot night in Aggieland
South Carolina football dropped a 30-6 game to Texas A&M to close out SEC play Saturday. With the Gamecocks moving to 4-7 on the season and a bowl fully out of reach, it’s time to grade the Gamecocks.
Quarterbacks: This was an evening with some struggles. The pass protection certainly didn’t help Ryan Hilinski, nor did missing his No. 1, 4, 5, 6 and 7 targets. He ended up 16 for 41 passing for 175 yards. After a vicious hit, there appeared to be some miscommunications on routes. After Hilinski exited the game, he had to come back in when Dakereon Joyner took a nasty hit in garbage time. Grade: D
Running backs: Rico Dowdle was one of the few men left standing without Tavien Feaster or Mon Denson. He finished with 12 yards on nine carries, while Kevin Harris had 9 on three. They did combine for 36 receiving yards on seven catches. Grade: D-
Wide receiver: Bodies were again a problem. Bryan Edwards was out. Shi Smith caught two balls but appeared to be limited at points by a hamstring. Chad Terrell led receivers in catches, while Joyner and Legette didn’t catch a ball on four targets. Grade: D-
Tight end: Kyle Markway was the primary tight end again and put up 47 yards on five catches. Chandler Ferrell again got some work and the blocking in the run game again had its issues. Grade: D
Offensive line: South Carolina averaged 3.1 yards per carry on non-sack runs and gave up eight QB hurries, plus a sack. It was another rough day all around. Grade: F
Defensive line: This group was critical in holding A&M back as long as the Gamecocks did. They delivered hit after hit to QB Kellen Mond. Kingsley Enagbare had a sack and a half and two hurries, and the stats probably underplayed the line’s impact. That said, when things went wrong, they ended with very long plays. Grade: B+
Linebackers: The group played down a senior leader, with T.J. Brunson disqualified in the midst of A&M’s first drive. Jahmar Brown and Damani Staley both chipped in. Play was good at points, but a couple big breakdowns led to longer gains. Grade: B-
Secondary: That USC allowed seven passes of 15 or more yards and still held Mond to a QB rating of 126.9 is a testament to how solidly the back five played much of the game. Jammie Robinson had 15 tackles. They group broke up a few balls, though there were some pass interference calls as well. Grade: B-
Special teams: Joseph Charlton was good on punts, save for a low one that ended with a big return. He also turned a protection breakdown into a first down to avoid disaster. Parker White hit his kicks and Xavier Legette had one big return. There was an issue or two with not coming up to field punts. Grade: B-
Coaching: South Carolina couldn’t scheme up anything to shake things loose in the run game for the second week in a row, even after Muschamp promised more creativity. The team kept playing hard, even as the lead grew, so there’s something in that. Grade: D+
Overall: South Carolina was supposed to lose on the road to a more talented team. It played close for a good while but was never able to get back into it, as the second half opened with 22 yards and one first down on four drives. The defense held its own until it wore out. Grade: D
