South Carolina football: With Jake Bentley out, time to go all in on the Tavien Feaster-Rico Dowdle combination
Lost in the disappointing ending to South Carolina’s opener Saturday was the strong start from the backfield. It was the silver lining in an otherwise forgettable Week 1 loss to North Carolina.
It was clear that not only did Tavien Feaster deliver a highlight-reel spin move, his counterpart, Rico Dowdle, who got the start, was likely at his best thanks to competition from the newcomer.
“It was a great feeling to break one for my first touchdown in a new environment,” Feaster told the Spartanburg Herald-Journal.
Dowdle joined Feaster in the early production with 7 carries for 42 yards and a 16-yard reception by halftime while Feaster rushed 7 times for 56 yards and caught a 7-yard pass. But that great start sputtered after halftime as the Gamecocks had just 34 yards on 15 carries.
Still the duo combined for 134 yards on 24 carries — their 5.5 yards per carry exceeding Bentley’s 4.7 yards per attempt and nearly matching his 147 yards passing.
South Carolina’s 31 carries were among the lowest in recent memory. The Gamecocks had just 4 games last year with fewer carries.
It appeared that the second year of the Bryan McClendon offense would yield more ground game success after there were 4 rushes for 40 yards on the Gamecocks’ opening 2 possessions. Perhaps Feaster was the missing piece to an offense that was inconsistent in the past but now had QB Jake Bentley in his 4th season surrounded by talented receivers and a second tailback in Dowdle?
“Offensively I felt like in the first half we moved the ball, we didn’t capitalize on some opportunities we had,” Muschamp said shortly after the game. “We’ve just got to go back and look at the second half about why we weren’t moving the ball better.”
If the hand-wringing over the Bentley injury news carries any weight, and as the team adjusts to Ryan Hilinski at quarterback, the running game appears to have the potential to shoulder the load.
Feaster said the fast start could foreshadow better things to come later in the season as they further develop a one-two punch.
“Yes sir. I believe we both ran the ball very well and obviously the run game was working and that’s what we went with,” he said.
Even Bentley, who had a rough finish with 2 interceptions, found a small positive in the backfield.
“It’s hard to see the positives, but Rico and Feaster both looked good so we have to find a way to continue to move the ball on offense,” Bentley said.
While some Gamecock fans believe the sky is falling and want immediate and swift personnel changes nearly across the board, the veteran newcomer took a different, if more measured, tone.
“It’s very frustrating that we didn’t finish the way we wanted to, but I think week by week, game by game it will be different,” Feaster said. “We have to learn from it, watch our mistakes on film and get better as a unit. I definitely can get better at my job and play every play like it’s my last and keep going hard.”
With Hilinski getting up to speed, it’s difficult to see the talented crop of wide receivers reaching their full strength from the outset. So while the running game is clicking, the Gamecocks should make opponents stop it. After all, last season, they were undefeated (7-0) when they rushed at least 37 times.