The South Carolina defense has been hit especially hard this week with players opting out and dealing with injuries.

DEs Aaron Sterling and Brad Johnson are out for the year because injury, interim coach Mike Bobo said at his Tuesday press conference. They also missed the loss at Ole Miss.

Bobo said sophomore wide receiver Xavier Legette, who’s dealt with injuries throughout the season, did not practice on Tuesday morning.

Johnson has moved around the defense in his career, and had eight tackles in six games this season. He played defensive end and outside linebacker. Sterling has missed three games this season, and made nine tackles.

The missed time has cut short what had the potential to be a promising season for Sterling. Before this season, he had already appeared in 33 games, with 15 career starts over the past three seasons. He had 78 career tackles in that time, including 16 tackles for loss and 9 sacks.

Johnson has struggled to find traction and playing time, as entering this season, he had appeared in 28 games with two starts. He had 3.5 sacks with six quarterback hurries.

South Carolina plays Missouri at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday on the SEC Network alternate channel. The Gamecocks are looking to end a three-game losing streak.