We are only two weeks into the 2020 season, and South Carolina has already given itself a tough hole to dig out of. They fell to 0-2 after a 38-24 loss to the Florida Gators this past Saturday. This team has improved since the poor finish to the 2019 season, but the Gamecocks mistakes are keeping them from seeing the benefits. Facing a schedule of all SEC opponents leaves little room for error. Through two weeks, Will Muschamp’s team has made too many simple errors that have cost them in games they otherwise could have won.
Gamecocks Mistakes Punished Harshly in Two Losses
South Carolina has given themselves chances to win each of its first two games. Unfortunately, they have also made the errors that have kept them from coming out on top. This team has improved from the one that ended last season with a whimper. The offense has shown it can move the ball and is better at converting red zone opportunities into points. Defensively this squad has more depth and a few emerging playmakers. However, the inconsistency and the Gamecock mistakes have been too much to overcome.
Self Inflicted
While credit must be given to both Florida and Tennessee for making plays, South Carolina has been at fault for its own downfall the first two weeks of the season. Dropped passes have been the main culprit on the offensive side. The young receiving corps has had far too many bounce off their hands. From drops on third down that killed drives to the pass that bounced off of Shi Smith’s hands and was returned for a score by Tennessee linebacker Henry To’oto’o. The latter of those was the difference in the ball game.
When just looking at this year’s team, the drops could be blamed on an inexperienced group of pass-catchers. However, it has been an issue even back to when current NFL guys like Deebo Samuel and Bryan Edwards were on the team. A lack of focus and consistency has been this program’s main issue for the past few seasons. Gamecocks mistakes to this point are correctable, and they have shown flashes of the talent on the roster. The frustration lies in the fact that they are recurring issues, so the confidence that they will be fixed is low at best.
In the Details
The defense has the same affliction of wavering focus and inconsistency. There have been some improvements on that side of the ball as well, but not enough. Kingsley Enagbare, Zacch Pickens, Jaycee Horn, and John Dixon have all had solid starts to the 2020 season. The defense has played well at times through two ball games, but have had far too many missed tackles and blown assignments. Big plays in the passing game have hurt the Gamecocks through two weeks. Some of that is attributed to guys from Florida and Tennessee making tough catches, which compounds the dropped passes issue on South Carolina’s offense. Some of that is from the defenders in garnet and black being out of position and not communicating properly.
Tackling was always going to be an issue in college football this season. Restricted practice times and lack of warm-up games as the biggest factors in that. Coach Muschamp’s defense hasn’t been terrible in this area, but the ones they’ve missed have been costly. After holding the Volunteer’s run game in check for most of the night, the Gamecocks were gashed on the opening possession of the second half that resulted in an easy touchdown. Florida’s electric wideout Kadarius Toney proved too tough for South Carolina to tackle all day long in the Swamp. His 57-yard catch and run put the game away, as he evaded a few would-be tacklers, and bounced off a couple of other poor attempts to bring him down.
Salvage Mission
There have been some silver linings to this 0-2 start. Purely based on the play on the field, this is an improved team over the one that finished 2019. Smith has stepped up to be the main guy at receiver. He is among the nation’s leaders in targets and catches. Kevin Harris is proving he is a very capable lead back, rushing for 100 yards against Florida. Colin Hill has been efficient and effective taking over the quarterback position as well. Add in the defensive names mentioned earlier and there are things to be optimistic about.
However, this is a results-oriented business. Currently, the results are not good. The improved play is nice to see, but the Gamecocks mistakes are still too much to overcome. In a season with all SEC games on the schedule, the margin for error is small. South Carolina is not a bad football team, but they are not a good one either. They too often make the mistakes that winning programs avoid, while not coming up with the timely plays that good teams seem to make at crucial times. For the most part, the issues this team has are easily correctable.
Prove It
As with each of Muschamp’s seasons in Columbia, consistency is the key. Neither he nor his team has proven they can consistently do the things necessary to win each week. They face Vanderbilt this weekend in what is a must-win three weeks into the season. This is not an ideal position to be in, but it’s where they are. Results are what matter, and the results have to start getting better.
