On paper, South Carolina and Michigan are similar teams that had similar seasons.
Both beat up on bottom-feeder teams in their respective conferences, both fell short against the top teams on their schedules, both had offenses that ranked among the worst in college football this season (South Carolina No. 108, Michigan No. 101) and both lost their No. 1 wide receiver to injury early in the year.
South Carolina (8-4, 5-3 SEC) enters Monday’s Outback Bowl after losing its final regular-season game, 34-10, to No. 1 Clemson. The Gamecocks also lost this season to No. 3 Georgia, Texas A&M and Kentucky. Their best wins came over NC State and Missouri in weeks one and two.
Michigan (8-4, 5-4 Big Ten) and USC shared one common opponent this year — Florida. U-M opened the campaign with a 33-17 victory over the Gators in Arlington, Texas, while South Carolina posted a 28-20 triumph Nov. 11.
South Carolina enters the bowl game with a slightly different look, however, on offense. The school fired offensive coordinator Kurt Roper after the regular season. Roper also called the team’s plays. The play-calling duties have been handed over to Bryan McClendon, who Chris Clark of GamecockCentral.com says wants to run a faster tempo offense.
“The offense really just didn’t click on game day,” Clark said. “Their identity on offense is not what they wanted it to be. They wanted it to be more productive. … They also didn’t play with the type of tempo that they wanted.”
The belief in South Carolina was that the offense would take a step forward in year two of head coach Will Muschamp and Roper, but it never did.
The team dealt with injuries all over the unit, forcing the Gamecocks to shuffle around offensive linemen, change up at running back and find a new top receiving option when junior wide receiver Deebo Samuel was lost for the season against Kentucky in game three. Sophomore running back Rico Dowdle, who had become the starter, was injured against Tennessee in week seven and will not play.
Leading the charge on offense for South Carolina is sophomore quarterback Jake Bentley. A year younger than most of his classmates after entering college a year early, Bentley is now in his second year as a starter.
“Jake had some struggles down the stretch at the end of the season,” Clark said. “I’m sure part of that was from playing good defenses likes Florida and Clemson. Michigan will certainly be a big test in that regard as well.”
This season, Bentley has completed 62.4 percent of his passes for 2,555 yards, 16 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He's also rushed for six scores.
He was not a spring enrollee last year and went on to grab the No. 1 spot halfway through last season, turning the team around after a 2-4 start to make a bowl game. This year, he’s been a calming presence in the huddle and has much more knowledge of the offense. He also has the ability to improvise when the play breaks down.
“Let’s not make him out to be Lamar Jackson or Johnny Manziel, but he certainly is capable of scrambling,” Clark said. “He has a pretty good pocket feel, and he does have some athleticism. He’s even made some guys miss. He has maneuverability, and he’s a smart runner.”
He’s got two reliable targets in the passing game, sophomore wide receiver Bryan Edwards and junior tight end Hayden Hurst.
During the regular season, Edwards caught 59 passes for 705 yards and four touchdowns, while Hurst hauled in 41 catches for 518 yards and two scores.
Edwards is a 6-3 receiver that can win 50-50 balls with good hands.
Meanwhile, Hurst is a big, fast and athletic guy that the Gamecocks can do a lot with, including jet sweeps and tight end screens.
“Hurst is one of the best tight ends in the country. They can split him out wide, put him as an H-back and put him down on the line,” Clark said. “He’s a guy you could argue has even been underutilized.”
In the ground game, it’s been running back by committee. Redshirt sophomore A.J. Turner is the team’s leading rusher, with 92 carries for 517 yards and three touchdowns. Redshirt sophomore Ty’Son Williams also has 92 carries, which have gained 460 yards and a score.
“Turner looks more like a third-down, change-of-pace back, but he’s a tougher runner between the tackles than his size [5-10, 184 pounds] would indicate,” Clark said.
Clark thinks that the key for South Carolina will be the team’s pace on offense.
“I would anticipate more tempo,” Clark said. “I think South Carolina will play faster in this game, as long as the game flow allows for it. I think they’ll open things up more and let Bentley throw it around, take some more shots.”
Doing this, however, could be a tougher task than anticipated when going against Michigan’s defense, which is ranked third in the nation, allowing just 268.6 yards per game.
“The formula sounds easy, but it’s really hard to execute,” Clark said. “They have to neutralize Michigan’s defensive front. It’s easy to sit here and say it, but much harder to do it. It was a similar case against Clemson.”
Clemson had its way with the Gamecocks in a 34-10 victory during the regular-season finale.
“South Carolina is not a team that can line it up against Michigan and say we’re going to run the ball at you,” Clark said. “There’s just not any reason to believe that would work out.”
The strength of this South Carolina team is a defense that is ranked No. 51 in the country, allowing 374.6 yards per game.
“Will Muschamp has a great reputation as a defensive mind and developer of talent,” Clark said. “They’re going to be physical, and they’re going to be disciplined. You can tell they’re well coached. Schematically, they’re going to be very sound with what they do.”
Muschamp runs a multiple-front defense, meaning he mixes and matches schemes. Clark expects South Carolina to employ a little more 4-3 against Michigan to help stop the run.
Linebacker is the strong point and is led by fifth-year senior Skai Moore, who paces the team with 88 tackles. He also added eight tackles for loss, two sacks and three interceptions.
He missed all of last season with an injury and is tied for the school record for career interceptions with 14.
South Carolina, similar to Michigan, uses a hybrid linebacker spot called a buck. This player does a bit of everything — rushing the passer, dropping in coverage and playing on the line.
Sophomore D.J. Wonnum handles that position and has been a force all season, leading the team in tackles for loss (13) and sacks (six). He’s also fourth on the team in tackles with 52.
The secondary is strong, bolstered by junior cornerback Rashad Fenton and senior cornerback JaMarcus King. The two have combined this season for 20 passes defensed.
“I think South Carolina’s Achilles heel this season has been offensive production,” Clark said. “The defense has kept them afloat in getting to 8-4. Michigan’s defense is really good, there’s no doubt. Neither of these teams have been awe-inspiring on offense, so I think it’s going to be a close game.”
Despite the offensive struggles, Clark thinks it’s time that the Gamecocks finally have a stronger showing with a different play-caller and quicker pace. He has South Carolina winning the game 21-17.
“For me, it’ll come down to turnovers,” Clark said. “The team that creates more turnovers wins the game, because I don’t see a lot of scoring punch either way. I’m inclined to take South Carolina, just because they haven’t really had a good offensive performance all season, and I think they may be able to do a little more with Bryan McClendon calling plays and opening things up. They’ll have more of the identity that they want.”
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