The Gamecocks’ D-line should be solid, but watch out for this unit in 2021
The Shane Beamer era is inching nearer and nearer.
Now just four days out from South Carolina’s season opener against Eastern Illinois, I’m excited to welcome you all to “Portnoy’s Postbag.” For those of you I haven’t met, I’m Ben Portnoy and I’m the new South Carolina football reporter for The State.
I’ll be writing this mailbag each week as a chance for you, the fan, to see your questions answered online and in print here at The State. So if you’ve got any rumblings, thoughts or questions be sure to shoot them my way via email at bportnoy@thestate.com or Twitter DM at @bportnoy15.
With that, let’s get to a handful of questions heading into the first game of 2021:
Will (the South Carolina offensive line) be strong in run blocking, how bout pass blocking? Will they fare better with Luke Doty at signal caller, because of his ability to move around and scramble outside the pocket? Will offensive line be equal to task with Jason Brown or Zeb Noland at QB? — Matthew L.
I know your question was a bit longer, Matthew, but I’ll key in on a couple of these really good queries for the sake of keeping things focused.
As far as blocking, the Gamecocks can’t be much worse than they were a season ago. South Carolina ranked 12th of 14 Southeastern Conference teams in pass blocking and tied for ninth in run blocking, according to Pro Football Focus.
USC does lose Sadarius Hutcherson to the NFL, but they bring back just about everyone else. The Gamecocks return three starters and a combined 101 appearances up front as part of offensive line coach Greg Adkins’ unit. Eric Douglas should anchor things in the middle with some combination of Jazston Turnetine, Jovaughn Gwyn, Jaylen Nichols and Dylan Wonnum around him.
To the rest of your question, I think Luke Doty’s legs certainly make a difference in terms of extending plays when there’s inevitably a breakdown. When Doty is actually healthy, though, remains to be seen.
Neither Zeb Noland or Jason Brown projects as a world-beater on the ground, but both have played enough snaps at the collegiate level — albeit not in the SEC — that they should be able to extend plays a bit.
What is the strength of the defense with the new scheme? Who is the captain of the defense? — Robert H.
I think the obvious answer here is the defensive line, but I’ll go in another direction.
South Carolina should be deep at linebacker given the returns of Sherrod Greene, Brad Johnson, Mo Kaba and Damani Staley. Throw in the addition of Delaware transfer Debo Williams and I like the Gamecocks’ chances to be really good in the middle of this defense.
White’s system is certainly unique in that South Carolina will only trot out two true linebackers in a 4-2-5 scheme. That said, there will be a few hybrid roles that allow guys like Johnson, Rosendo Louis Jr. and others to get moved around the formation and create bizarre looks for opposing quarterbacks.
South Carolina has yet to actually announce its captains for the upcoming season (it’s probably a safe bet Beamer announces this at his Tuesday press conference). If I had to guess, I’m rolling with defensive tackle Jabari Ellis, cornerback Cam Smith, safety R.J. Roderick or defensive ends Kingsley “JJ” Enagbare or Aaron Sterling.
Could we call Willy B, the COCKPIT? — Randy J.
Yes Randy, you can! Well, sort of.
South Carolina just announced two weeks ago that it will now officially brand its student section as “The Cockpit.”
Now, if you ask me, there were a few other options out there for the taking: Hen House, Rooster Row, Chicken Coop. However, I’m here for the Cockpit branding. Good on the athletic department for this one. Count it as a win for the marketing department.
Ben’s Best
I’ve done this in previous columns and I’d like to bring it here to y’all in Columbia. Each week I pick a random five things to rank at the bottom of my mailbag. This week, I’ll start with my top-five SEC stadiums that I’ve covered games at.
I’m excited to add South Carolina, Georgia and Missouri to the list this year. Gainesville will be the last addition next fall, but here’s my top-five for the time being:
- Tiger Stadium (LSU)
- Kyle Field (Texas A&M)
- Bryant Denny Stadium (Alabama)
- Davis Wade Stadium (Mississippi State)
- Neyland Stadium (Tennessee)
(Call me biased after two years covering Mississippi State, but those cowbells are loud! They make for a really underrated atmosphere)
