How Spencer Rattler found the love again with commitment to South Carolina
Call it what you want.
Poor fit. Better options. Flat out unfair.
Spencer Rattler entered the 2021 season as the most recent Heisman Trophy favorite in a long line of stat-stuffing Oklahoma quarterbacks. He concluded the year sitting on the bench during Bedlam as OU was booted from the College Football Playoff race by in-state rival Oklahoma State.
“Gut wrenching loss tonight,” then-Sooners head coach Lincoln Riley said after the game. “No other way to describe it.”
Monday, the fans who left Rattler’s side returned — albeit in a different shade of red. The former five-star quarterback announced his intention to join Shane Beamer and South Carolina in a coup that has already reverberated around college football.
But for Rattler, Monday’s decision wasn’t just about a fresh start. The love that was lost this season amid quarterback changes, on-field struggles and a fan base that flipped on him as quickly as it celebrated its golden-armed signal-caller finally returned.
“I think once that season got over with he was like, ‘OK, let’s go. Time to move on and let’s write a new chapter. Let’s start the story over and let’s figure out what’s going to be best,’ ” Rattler’s longtime quarterback trainer Mike Giovando told The State on Monday night. “And that’s where he’s at right now.”
The rise of Spencer Rattler
Rattler, as of this writing, hasn’t spoken with anyone publicly about his decision. But if there’s anyone who can speak to the wunderkind-turned-transfer, it’s Giovando.
The quarterback guru based in Arizona has trained signal-callers for almost three decades. The last 10 years have included Rattler.
Giovando received a call a decade back about the strong-armed quarterback who was lighting up little leagues around the Phoenix area. When he got a chance to see Rattler — then just 11 years old — in the flesh, it backed up the talk. He looked like the next big thing.
“I watched (Spencer) play and was like, ‘Man this kid’s a natural,’ “ Giovando said. “He was really, really, really advanced for what he was doing at that age — spinning the ball, throwing the ball all over the yard.”
As Rattler grew, so did his acclaim. He was rated the No. 1 quarterback in the 2019 class by 247Sports. His offer sheet included every blue blood in America. Rattler was even highlighted on the Netflix show “QB1: Beyond the Lights” his senior year at Pinnacle High School.
A commitment to Oklahoma only added to the fervor. So, too, did a redshirt freshman season in which Rattler completed 214 of 317 passes for 3,031 yards, 28 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
He was anointed a Heisman front-runner for the 2021 season. Oklahoma and Lincoln Riley were projected to make a run at the College Football Playoff once more.
Then the crash came. Hard.
Rattler struggled out of the gate this fall. The crispness that was there as a freshman shifted to wayward throws and climbing interception numbers.
Close calls against Tulane and Nebraska didn’t exactly inspire confidence either.
“I’ve just got to play up to my standard, up to my game,” Rattler said in September of how outside pressure might’ve affect him amid a slow start. “These first three games haven’t been the games we’ve all wanted to have. I haven’t played to my best yet and it’s coming.”
Pressure or not, an 8-of-15 passing start to the Red River Showdown in Week 6 against Texas largely eliminated any award hope. Freshman quarterback Caleb Williams’ second-half spark then functionally ended Rattler’s OU career.
Two days after Oklahoma’s regular season-ending loss to Oklahoma State, Rattler was in the transfer portal.
The season that felt destined for the Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York City had ended with a thud.
“I have my own opinion, but at the end of the day, it’s Coach Riley’s team, and he’s the head coach and he made decisions and that’s what he did,” Giovando said in reference to Rattler’s benching. “(Spencer) wanted to play. He felt like he should have been playing. But he also knew, ‘You know what, if this is the way it’s gonna be, I’m going to finish this thing out and be here for the team if they need me. I’m gonna do my part and I’m gonna persevere through this. Then once this is all said and done, we get through the season, we’ll sit down and talk about — Hey, what’s the next best move?’ ”
Landing at South Carolina
The exact timeline is hazy. It all came together quickly.
Rattler reportedly met with South Carolina’s staff over Zoom in recent days. He hadn’t visited the campus, but some prognosticated he might head to Columbia for an in-person look.
Rumors swirled about where Rattler would land. UCLA was a popular thought. Ole Miss also felt logical given head coach Lane Kiffin’s high-powered offenses.
South Carolina, though, had an ace in the hole.
Fans connected Beamer and Rattler almost as soon as the latter entered the transfer portal Nov. 29. The ties were obvious. Beamer spent three years on Riley’s staff and was beloved by those in the locker room in Norman. But would it be enough to land arguably the most sought-after quarterback transfer this side of Jalen Hurts?
“That familiarity definitely helped out,” Giovando said. “It helped to have that little bit of comfort with the guy that you have the potential to be playing for. You kind of know what (Beamer) is all about. “
Beyond the Beamer connections, there were stylistic tendencies to like. Rattler, according to Giovando, was intrigued with the pro-style offense Marcus Satterfield and his staff have worked to implement. After all, the NFL is the ultimate goal.
Potentially playing with fellow Oklahoma tight Austin Stogner — who also committed to South Carolina on Monday night — was an added element of intrigue. As was the chance for Rattler to prove himself, not only in the Southeastern Conference, but at a program that wasn’t likely to be pegged atop the SEC East next fall.
“The lingo, the plays, the schemes, everything about what Coach Satterfield does is based on the highest level of NFL football,” Giovando said. “I think Spence thought that was important as well. (He wanted) to get into a scheme and in a system that’s going to help (him) translate to the next level when (he) gets that opportunity.”
What’s next for Beamer, Rattler, Gamecocks?
That Rattler landed at South Carolina won’t solely be met with unbridled optimism. There will, and already are, detractors.
The former five-star has had questions raised about his character before. His Netflix appearance didn’t necessarily endear him to fans either.
But those are moments and days that are behind Rattler, Giovando assures.
Rattler has matured over the last three years — and even the last few weeks since entering the transfer portal. It’s why he responded to every coach that contacted him during the transfer process, according to Giovando. It’s why he’s slated to go out and throw with Giovando on Tuesday and three times per week over the next month.
“He’s ready,” Giovando said succinctly. “He’s excited.”
South Carolina landed what it believes is a program-changing quarterback. Rattler, too, has found a home to conclude a career that has been momentarily derailed, but is just a productive season away from another round of NFL Draft discussion.
Those conversations, though, are for down the road. Monday, Rattler was inundated with excitement from the garnet and black faithful.
The love that left overnight in Norman returned once more in Columbia.
This story was originally published December 14, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
