On Luke Doty’s role, plus final thoughts from South Carolina’s spring game
South Carolina wrapped up its spring on Friday night as the garnet team pulled off 10-7 victory over the black squad to win the spring game at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Oddly enough, it was the second-straight year where the South Carolina spring game only produced 17 total points. Does that mean anything? Absolutely not — but, if you try hard enough, you can convince yourself it does.
Here are some other thoughts coming off the game.
Could Luke Doty actually be the backup quarterback?
It’s a tad tough to believe that Doty is actually in the running to be the backup quarterback. Not because of him or his talent, but because of his history.
Since signing with South Carolina as a quarterback back in 2020, Doty has hardly played the position over the past three years. Two years ago, he started camp at quarterback and then became a solid wide receiver. Last spring, Doty split time between quarterback and receiver ... then hardly played either position during the season.
So, when he began working with the quarterbacks this spring, it felt like deja vu: Doty suits up with the quarterbacks in spring, other guys elevate over him, he switches positions in the fall and plays wherever during the season.
Then Doty started the spring game for the garnet team over redshirt freshman Dante Reno. And the sixth-year senior looked really impressive, completing 10 of 12 passes for 85 yards and a 16-yard touchdown to Malik Clark just before halftime.
Take away freshman Cutter Woods’ 51-yard pass and Doty looked like the best quarterback not named LaNorris Sellers. So could Doty — in his sixth year of college — actually be the Gamecocks’ backup?
“Absolutely,” coach Shane Beamer said. “Luke’s had a really good spring. ... He brings a loud confidence to the team and kind of excited to see what the next step is for him.”
No need to worry about the offensive line ... yet
This happens every year. Folks come to a spring game and the offensive line looks like a pickup basketball team that met 10 seconds before they stepped on the court. There’s no chemistry. Guys are getting beat. It looks super confusing.
But, because teams were drafted, South Carolina basically threw together two random offensive lines. And guys like right tackle Cason Henry and guard Nick Sharpe weren’t playing. And, well, defenders sometimes know what play is coming in a scrimmage and can anticipate what’s going to happen.
Even in the first half of the game, there were offensive linemen playing who most fans have never heard of. If the offensive line looked incredible, that would almost be far more concerning than the defense constantly getting pressure against a hodgepodge unit.
In saying that, the group is still a question mark — especially at guard. The Gamecocks bring back both tackles, LT Josiah Thompson and Henry at RT, and Beamer admitted Troy transfer Boaz Stanley is the starting center coming out of spring (though that can change), but who starts at both guard spots is still up in the air.
Sloppy special teams
It’s always a little concerning when a Beamer-coached team doesn’t look completely flawless on special teams. And, well, Friday was subpar.
The punting, led by redshirt freshman Mason Love, was solid. Granted, there was no defense rushing to block the kick. And though Love also looked good as a kicker — hitting a 36-yarder in the game and a 41-yarder during an impromptu kicking competition — Beamer didn’t seem gung-ho about Love being both USC’s kicker and punter.
“I think it’s doable,” Beamer said. “I know I told you it’s not ideal, and it’s not. ... You want other guys to continue to come along too.”
That made it seem like South Carolina could target a kicker in the transfer portal this spring to at least challenge Love.
Speaking of challenging: Even though the Gamecocks had a number of guys returning punts, it wasn’t encouraging to see how so many of them struggled to hold onto the ball.
“We looked like we have never caught a punt in our lives out there tonight,” Beamer said. “But the good news is, that’s why you have a spring game and you do it in front of the crowd. So we can hopefully get that out of our system.”
Around the roster
▪ Running backs: It’s tough to judge guys running behind a jumbled offensive line, but the two tailbacks who stood out were Utah State transfer Rahsul Faison and redshirt freshman Matthew Fuller. Both were active in the passing game, and every time they touched the ball, they seemed to have an uncanny acceleration mixed with the ability to bounce off tackles and run through contact.
▪ Wide receivers: It’s perhaps the most-intriguing position on the roster, given that USC signed six freshman wide-outs and five participated in spring. With Mazeo Bennett sitting out, freshmen Brian Rowe Jr. (5 catches, 45 yards) and Malik Clark (2 catches, 21 yards, 1 TD) shined. Their route-running was superb and they quickly became the top targets for whatever quarterback was in the game.
▪ Tight ends: With Michael Smith out this spring with an injury, it was going to be interesting to see who stepped up. On Friday, that was Kentucky transfer Jordan Dingle, who hauled in four passes for 45 yards. Didn’t notice Brady Hunt much, but don’t think that’s any sort of indictment.
▪ The defense: South Carolina’s defense was impressive Friday night. Again, the rosters were funky and trying to gauge much is tough, but here are some observations: Ball State transfer DB Myles Norwood jumped a route and picked off QB Air Noland. Edge rusher Desmond Umeozulu dominated all night, constantly creating disruption in the backfield. Ditto for freshman edge Anthony Addison, whose pressure led to the Noland pick. And a surprise: Walk-on CB Jackson Burger — a Catawba Ridge alum — started for the garnet team and was constantly around the ball and finished with three tackles.
This story was originally published April 20, 2025 at 7:40 AM.
