Five lessons we learned from South Carolina’s win over Vanderbilt
South Carolina football is in the win column — the Gamecocks crushed the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday for a 41-7 victory, moving to 1-2 on the season.
In the rain and on the road, USC showed some progress after a disappointing start to the 2020 campaign. Here are some of the lessons learned from this weekend’s game.
Kevin Harris is South Carolina’s bell cow
Last week, sophomore running back Kevin Harris announced his firm control of the Gamecock backfield with a 100-yard effort in which he carried the ball 15 more times than any other tailback. But this Saturday, he put up true bell-cow numbers — 171 yards on 22 carries, including 25- and 88-yard scores, and four receptions for 29 yards. That put him at 200 all-purpose yards, more than double anyone else on the team.
Behind Harris, no other running back had more than five carries Saturday. In the span of just a few weeks, South Carolina has gone from having no clear option to lead its running back room to possessing one of the leading rushers in the SEC.
Vandy remains a step below
Much has been made of South Carolina’s struggles over the past year or so. After an 0-2 start to this season, there seemed to be a sense among fans and observers of the program that this game was a must-win, if only to prove that the Gamecocks are still ahead of the SEC East’s worst team. Carolina entered Saturday having won 11 in a row against the Commodores, and an upset loss might have all but doomed Will Muschamp.
Instead, USC got back on track with a blowout win. It’s still only Vandy, and one win alone isn’t enough to save the season. But the Gamecocks took care of business and preserved what little breathing room they still have.
Young defensive linemen are showing up
For the third week in a row, five-star freshman Jordan Burch had a highlight-reel play to light up social media — he crushed a punt returner with a vicious hit to flash his athleticism and physicality.
And he wasn’t alone in making an impression. Sophomore Zacch Pickens and freshman Tonka Hemingway played plenty of snaps as well, with Pickens picking up a tackle for loss.
“I think that we had a plan for Tonka and Jordan, they need continue to play more. They need to continue to grow. They’re getting better and better every time out,” Muschamp said.
Secondary tackling remains an issue
Muschamp acknowledged that his defensive backs’ tackling was “very poor” in a couple situations Saturday, but also stuck up for the group a bit in pointing out that the majority of missed tackles against Florida came on one play, a touchdown by Kadarius Toney.
Still, there’s no denying that South Carolina’s secondary needs some work. With junior cornerback Israel Mukuamu missing a good chunk of the game for unclear reasons, the Gamecocks gave up another touchdown on a pass where they allowed the Vandy receiver to extend the play and score with weak attempts that he was able to break through. Vanderbilt’s offense is woeful enough that it didn’t burn USC too badly, but the Gamecocks still allowed true freshman QB Ken Seals to complete more than 70% of his passes.
Parker White can hit anything — inside 50 yards
Senior kicker Parker White came within one field goal of tying the program record for consecutive makes early Saturday. Then he missed a 53-yarder in the second quarter to snap that streak. He bounced back to make 40-yarder later in the game, the 50th of his career. Of those 50, though, only one has been from 50 or more yards. White has become automatic from 49 yards in over past two years with a nearly perfect 22-for-23 mark, but from long distance, he’s 1-of-5 over the same span.
Next USC football game
Who: Auburn at South Carolina
When: Noon Saturday, Oct. 17
Where: Williams-Brice Stadium
TV: ESPN
This story was originally published October 11, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
