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Steve Spurrier finally has his man in Connor Mitch.
For all we know, the Head Ball Coach chose the redshirt sophomore as his quarterback weeks or months ago, but it wasn’t until Aug. 25 when Spurrier finally made his decision public.
Much has been made of the quarterback competition in Columbia this summer as four green signal-callers competed to start for the Gamecocks.
As the competition didn’t budge over the summer, we tended to forget that Mitch, along with Perry Orth, Michael Scarnecchia and Lorenzo Nunez, isn’t some scrawny underclassmen plucked from the Strom Thurmond Wellness and Fitness Center on campus. Steve Spurrier, a man who is arguably the godfather of SEC passing offenses, recruited these players. All have big arms and the ability to lead the Gamecock offense.
But rather than focusing on who the quarterback was going to be, perhaps the real question we should have been asking — and should still be asking now that we know Mitch will take the reins of the Gamecocks offense — is who is going ensure that the guy lining up under center in Week 1 has the necessary tools to compete and succeed?
“They’re all doing well,” Spurrier said of his quarterbacks via gamecocksonline.com after the four quarterbacks ran a 15 minute, extra-session drill after practice on Aug. 20.
“They do have talent. They have the ability to play, but the quarterbacks are about as good as the people around them. If the line can’t block, if the guys can’t get open, then none of them are going to throw for many yards. Hopefully the guys around the quarterback will give him the opportunity to play well.”
Spurrier is eluding to his wide receivers and offensive line, two units with more questions than answers entering the 2015 season.
THROUGH THE AIR
While South Carolina has a fairly deep running attack (#BashAndDash) with the trio of Brandon Wilds, David Williams and Shon Carson available to relieve Mitch of some pressure, the development of the wide receivers and offensive line will be crucial if the Gamecocks want to compete in the SEC East.
Having a potential All-American in Pharoh Cooper helps. But after that, the experience level plummets considerably at wide receiver. Cooper had 1,136 yards and 9 touchdowns last season as a first-team All-SEC wideout. The next closest returning receiver, however, is Shamier Jeffery, owner of a pair of catches for not enough yards to equal a first down last year.
And while that sounds dire, it’s not as bad as it appears. The Gamecocks have a young corps of pass-catchers led by redshirt freshman Deebo Samuels, who has impressed this summer and looks to have the Gamecocks’ “X” position sewn up. Senior Carlton Heard and freshman Terry Googer have also earned significant roles and will split time in the “B” slot.
The talent is there, but with no career catches between Samuels, Googer and Heard, the group will have to learn on the fly. Luckily, this isn’t your pass-happy Spurrier circa the Florida Gators of the ’90s. Spurrier has scaled back his passing attack in recent years in favor of a rushing game that’s put its last two tailbacks in the NFL.
“We hope to give our receivers an opportunity to contribute,” Spurrier continued via gamecocksonline.com. “They have some talent, too. They need to learn how to play.
“My old offense, I haven’t played in a long time. We don’t come to the ballpark filling the air with passes the way I use to back in the Florida days. We had receivers and an offensive line. If we threw three incompletes, we might be right back out there three plays later. (At South Carolina) we’ve got to stay on the field to win some games, and last year when we didn’t, we got beat.”
The Head Ball Coach might be a little harsh on his squad. The Gamecocks finished a respectable No. 36 in the nation last year (fourth in the SEC) on third-down conversions (.434) and No. 46 overall on fourth down (.545). But then again, seven wins is considered a down year for Spurrier, who’d won 11 games in each of the last three seasons. Of course, the Gamecocks had Dylan Thompson under center last year who set the program record for yards in a single season.
BUILDING A WALL
Whether or not Mitch builds a rapport with his receivers will depend a lot on the offensive line and its ability to quickly gel after the loss of All-American guard A.J. Cann and left tackle Corey Robinson.
“These quarterbacks do have the ability to throw the ball,” Spurrier said. “We’ve got to pass block a whole bunch better. Darius English looked like an All-American out here today. He comes around the corner and we can’t block him. So hopefully, we can improve and give them a little better pocket to throw out of.”
It’s never good when your head coach heaps praise on your third-string defensive end when asked about his team’s offensive line. That said, the South Carolina offensive line should provide enough protection to drive both the running and passing games — there will just be some old names in new places when the season starts.
Despite the loss of Cann and Robinson to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions, respectively, as well as backup Brock Stadnik to injury, South Carolina returns the balance of their unit with game experience.
That includes then-projected starting right tackle Mike Matulis, who appeared in only two games last year. Matulis is battling it out with Mason Zandi to start at the position. Cody Waldrop, Matulis’ replacement in 2014, joins Alan Knott at center, while Will Sport remains at right guard. The biggest move, strategically and literally, belongs to 6-foot-6, 326-pound Brandon Shell, who assumes Robinson’s old spot at left tackle.
South Carolina finished No. 20 in passing offense and No. 65 on the ground in the nation behind last year’s offensive line. While replicating the No. 20 ranking could be difficult with a first-year quarterback under center, it’s certainly within reason to think that a strong running game can help improve the line and vice versa. If Mitch, in turn, can get some momentum behind the passing attack then the Gamecocks could easily surprise some teams this season.
And South Carolina might just have its next-in-line within its quarterback lineage behind Thompson and Connor Shaw. At least now we know that Connor Mitch gets first shot.
Chris Wuensch is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers South Carolina and Tennessee.
