South Carolina Football: Panic Button?

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Every college football program is followed by eternal sunshine pumpers blinded by irrational exuberance and perpetual naysayers spreading intractable doom and gloom. The truth of things? It’s usually somewhere in between – and it typically changes from week-to-week and season-to-season.

For example, the long-term trajectories of fourth-year University of South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer and his predecessor, Will Muschamp, have been eerily similar in both their highs and lows. I tracked those trajectories following the 2022 season – when Beamer was riding high following upsets of Tennessee (here) and arch-rival Clemson (here) – and I plan on tracking them at the end of the season.

Assuming Beamer makes it to the end of the season, that is…

Dispensing with the “doom,” in one of my preview columns related to the University of South Carolina football program earlier this month, I tried to walk the line between false hope and hard reality.

“South Carolina is not without talent,” I noted, adding that Beamer and his staff have “plenty of weapons available.”

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One of those weapons? Sophomore wide receiver Nyck Harbor, whom I referred to as quite possibly “the most naturally gifted deep ball threat in the nation.” Harbor is a 6-foot-5, 235-pound wideout from Washington, D.C. who runs the 100-meter dash in 10.11 seconds. Obviously that’s not quite as fast as world record holder Usain Bolt (who ran it in 9.58 seconds), but remember this: Harbor weighs thirty pounds more than Bolt.

Oh, and he’s a baller. The sprinting thing is just his side hustle…

Unfortunately, second-year offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains hardly attempted to utilize Harbor during the Gamecocks’ season-opening 23-19 “victory” over Old Dominion – a Sun Belt school which began the 2024 campaign ranked No. 108 out of 134 NCAA FBS programs, according to ESPN’s power index.

Harbor was targeted just twice – including a pass airmailed by quarterback LaNorris Sellers that nearly got the star wideout cut in half. Harbor limped off the field after coming down awkwardly on the overthrow, but was able to return to action and should be good to go this weekend in the Gamecocks’ SEC opener against Kentucky.

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The Gamecocks managed just 288 yards of total offense against the Monarchs – and were basically gifted both of their touchdowns after Old Dominion lost a pair of fumbles inside its own ten-yard line.

Sound like the sort of performance you’d expect against a team that came into Williams-Brice stadium as a three-touchdown underdog?

In fairness to Loggains, he’s working with a redshirt freshman quarterback and a host of new starters. So some growing pains on offense are to be expected. The problem? Loggains didn’t exactly set the SEC on fire a year ago with NFL talent like Spencer Rattler and Xavier Leggette on the roster – with South Carolina’s offense finishing No. 75 nationally in points per game (26) and No. 81 nationally in total output (363.1 yards per game).

New “running game coordinator” Shawn Elliott also failed to get the job done during his first outing in his new role – with the Gamecocks averaging a measley 3.1 yards per carry against the Monarchs.

Oh, and if Loggains and Elliott thought the Old Dominion defense was tough, this week’s matchup figures to be a significant escalation in terms of degree of difficulty. Kentucky held Southern Miss to 131 total yards (including just five net yards rushing) and zero points last weekend en route to a 31-0 victory over the Golden Eagles. That, incidentally, is how a Southeastern Conference program handles its business against an undermanned opponent from a non-power four conference.

Why, again, does South Carolina consistently struggle to handle its business against such opponents?

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Like Muschamp, Beamer has struggled to land an offensive coordinator capable of elevating his program – and if the situation doesn’t turn around soon, it could cost him his job. Loggains’ hiring in December 2022 was a decision Beamer had to get right… but the early returns on it are not good.

As for Elliott, we will see if the ground game shows any signs of improvement against Kentucky… if it doesn’t, 2024 is going to be an even longer year than previously surmised.

Defensively, South Carolina showed flashes of promise – especially up front. True freshman edge rusher Dylan Stewart – a 6-foot-6, 248-pound five-star prospect out of Washington, D.C. – recorded 1.5 sacks and two forced fumbles during his first collegiate action. Meanwhile, fifth-year former Georgia Tech lineman Kyle Kennard brought the heat from the other end of the formation – notching 2.5 sacks and one forced fumble in his Gamecock debut.

Steward and Kennard both looked sensational on Saturday – but how will they perform against a Southeastern Conference offensive line?

The Wildcats began the 2024 campaign ranked No. 34 on ESPN’s power index but ticked up five notches after their season-opening win. South Carolina started the season at No. 33, but fell fifteen spots to No. 48 after “beating” Old Dominion. The only SEC school currently ranked below the Gamecocks? Vanderbilt… but Commodores’ fans aren’t complaining after they upset Virginia Tech in overtime in Nashville on Saturday.

South Carolina heads into Lexington, Kentucky as a 9.5-point underdog. The spread opened early Sunday morning at 6.5 points, but within twelve hours it had already jumped by a field goal. The Gamecocks boast a 20-14-1 all-time record against Kentucky, and have won two in a row against their erstwhile SEC East rival – including a big upset in Lexington two years ago against a Wildcat team ranked No. 13 nationally at the time.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …

Will Folks is the owner and founding editor of FITSNews. Prior to founding his own news outlet, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina, bass guitarist in an alternative rock band and bouncer at a Columbia, S.C. dive bar. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.

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