The 10 Most Important Questions Heading Into The 2008 Season
posted by Scott Hood, Thursday, July 10, 2008
1. Will USC Develop A Killer Instinct?: This is, in my opinion, the most important question squarely facing USC this season. Spurrier has mentioned often in the past of USC’s urgent need to “learn how to compete.” Spurrier claimed this spring the Gamecocks had enough players to compete in the SEC. But, as I’ve said multiple times before, it takes more than physical talent to win in the SEC. It takes a keen killer instinct, something the Gamecocks failed to demonstrate last season while suffering an embarrassing home loss to Vanderbilt and last-minute deflating defeats to Tennessee and Clemson.
2. Will USC’s Special Teams Show Improvement?: Ray Rychleski arrived at USC with glowing accolades regarding his abilities to coach special teams. We saw a glimpse of his skills and mannerisms during the spring. The players appeared to respond to his coaching. One thing I like about Rychleski is his hard-core philosophy that everybody on the roster, including starters, plays special teams. Gone are the days when certain “star” players could beg out. That won’t happen with Rychleski calling the shots. Spurrier was clearly impressed with the much-needed surge in toughness he brought to the program. Hopefully, it will pay dividends this season.
3. Who Will Play Quarterback?: If only I had a nickel for each time I’ve been asked if Stephen Garcia will be reinstated prior to Aug. 15 when his current suspension is scheduled to end. If he’s not, his chances of playing this season diminish considerably. Right now, it’s a two-man race between Tommy Beecher and Chris Smelley, and that battle is too close to call with Beecher holding a slim lead. The chances of anyone else playing quarterback are slim, unless Garcia returns before the start of fall camp.
4. Will USC Stop The Run More Effectively?: With the secondary primed for another big year, USC’s defense could rise or fall this season based on how well it stops the run. I realize the 2007 numbers were skewed a bit by the poor performances against Arkansas and Florida, but the warning signs were evident early. USC exhibited the inability to stop opposing rushing attacks from the outset of the season when Louisiana-Lafayette totaled 252 yards on the ground. In my opinion, stopping the run in football is similar to rebounding in basketball. It’s mostly a matter of want-to.
5. Is The Offensive Line Ready To Step Up?: If there is one assistant coach who could be on the ‘hot seat’ this season, it’s offensive line coach John Hunt. But Spurrier seemed to point the finger at the players on the Gamecock Club tour, contending Hunt was one of the hardest working coaches on the staff and doing everything possible to get the line to perform at an adequate level. The HBC hinted a lack of pride was the root cause of the line’s sluggish performance last season. Spurrier is cautiously optimistic the O-line will play better this season. Hunt certainly hopes so, because his job could be on the line.
6. How Will Mike Davis Handle Being The No. 1 Running Back?: The last time Davis was the top dog in the backfield was 2005 when Cory Boyd was serving a season-long suspension. Davis flourished by rushing for a career-high 666 yards. But he took a back seat to Boyd the past two seasons. Davis is by far USC’s most experienced ball carrier and the Gamecocks need him to deliver the goods this season. If his mind is right, he could rush for 800 yards or more and potentially conclude his career among the top six or seven rushers in school history.
7. Will Kenny McKinley Get Any Help At Wide Receiver?: He must, or McKinley will battle double teams all season. Dion Lecorn showed last season he has the potential to become a No. 1 receiver in the future, but he’ll need to double last season’s output to become a legitimate threat. The rest of the wide receiving corp is largely unproven. I’m looking for Moe Brown and Larry Freeman to step up in 2008. In fact, they probably have no choice.
8. Is The Secondary As Good As Advertised?: I believe so. They played well last season as USC had the top passing defense in the SEC. Captain Munnerlyn is one of the best cover corners in the SEC, while I’m still looking for nominations for a better safety combo than Emanuel Cook and Darian Stewart. I think this is the year the secondary will emerge as one of the best in the country. The first litmus test will come Sept. 13 when Georgia QB Matthew Stafford comes to town.
9. Will New Defensive Coordinator Ellis Johnson Make A Significant Difference?: It didn’t take Johnson long this past spring to figure out that the USC defense lacked physicality, a trait shared by most of the top defenses in the SEC. Johnson will demand the defense play aggressively, with tenacity and, yes, with the same physical style his Mississippi State and Alabama teams showed earlier in his career. In my opinion, Johnson is the perfect coordinator for players like Jasper Brinkley, Eric Norwood, Emanuel Cook and Ladi Ajiboye. All of them play fast and want to get after the ball carrier.
10. Will USC Survive The Season-Ending Five-Game Gauntlet?: If the first seven games of the 2008 season play out the way I expect them too, USC will have no worse than a 6-1 record heading into the final five game stretch starting Oct. 18 with a home game against LSU. After that, the Gamecocks host Tennessee and Arkansas before finishing up with road contests at Florida and Clemson. Last season, USC flunked the five-game test. It must find a way to win at least two or three of those games (obviously, USC fans hope one of the wins comes against Clemson) or USC will find itself fighting for a berth in the PapaJohns.Com Bowl. The answer to your question is no, I don’t want to spend a week in late December in Birmingham. I’ve been there enough times.
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Steve Spurrier begins his fourth season as South Carolina’s head coach on July 31 when the Gamecock players report for the start of fall camp. After last season’s five-game meltdown that closed out the season and doomed USC’s bowl chances, there’s no question this is a critical year for the HBC. With that in mind, here are the 10 biggest questions confronting the USC football team with the season opener just seven weeks away.
1. Will USC Develop A Killer Instinct?: This is, in my opinion, the most important question squarely facing USC this season. Spurrier has mentioned often in the past of USC’s urgent need to “learn how to compete.” Spurrier claimed this spring the Gamecocks had enough players to compete in the SEC. But, as I’ve said multiple times before, it takes more than physical talent to win in the SEC. It takes a keen killer instinct, something the Gamecocks failed to demonstrate last season while suffering an embarrassing home loss to Vanderbilt and last-minute deflating defeats to Tennessee and Clemson.
2. Will USC’s Special Teams Show Improvement?: Ray Rychleski arrived at USC with glowing accolades regarding his abilities to coach special teams. We saw a glimpse of his skills and mannerisms during the spring. The players appeared to respond to his coaching. One thing I like about Rychleski is his hard-core philosophy that everybody on the roster, including starters, plays special teams. Gone are the days when certain “star” players could beg out. That won’t happen with Rychleski calling the shots. Spurrier was clearly impressed with the much-needed surge in toughness he brought to the program. Hopefully, it will pay dividends this season.
3. Who Will Play Quarterback?: If only I had a nickel for each time I’ve been asked if Stephen Garcia will be reinstated prior to Aug. 15 when his current suspension is scheduled to end. If he’s not, his chances of playing this season diminish considerably. Right now, it’s a two-man race between Tommy Beecher and Chris Smelley, and that battle is too close to call with Beecher holding a slim lead. The chances of anyone else playing quarterback are slim, unless Garcia returns before the start of fall camp.
4. Will USC Stop The Run More Effectively?: With the secondary primed for another big year, USC’s defense could rise or fall this season based on how well it stops the run. I realize the 2007 numbers were skewed a bit by the poor performances against Arkansas and Florida, but the warning signs were evident early. USC exhibited the inability to stop opposing rushing attacks from the outset of the season when Louisiana-Lafayette totaled 252 yards on the ground. In my opinion, stopping the run in football is similar to rebounding in basketball. It’s mostly a matter of want-to.
5. Is The Offensive Line Ready To Step Up?: If there is one assistant coach who could be on the ‘hot seat’ this season, it’s offensive line coach John Hunt. But Spurrier seemed to point the finger at the players on the Gamecock Club tour, contending Hunt was one of the hardest working coaches on the staff and doing everything possible to get the line to perform at an adequate level. The HBC hinted a lack of pride was the root cause of the line’s sluggish performance last season. Spurrier is cautiously optimistic the O-line will play better this season. Hunt certainly hopes so, because his job could be on the line.
6. How Will Mike Davis Handle Being The No. 1 Running Back?: The last time Davis was the top dog in the backfield was 2005 when Cory Boyd was serving a season-long suspension. Davis flourished by rushing for a career-high 666 yards. But he took a back seat to Boyd the past two seasons. Davis is by far USC’s most experienced ball carrier and the Gamecocks need him to deliver the goods this season. If his mind is right, he could rush for 800 yards or more and potentially conclude his career among the top six or seven rushers in school history.
7. Will Kenny McKinley Get Any Help At Wide Receiver?: He must, or McKinley will battle double teams all season. Dion Lecorn showed last season he has the potential to become a No. 1 receiver in the future, but he’ll need to double last season’s output to become a legitimate threat. The rest of the wide receiving corp is largely unproven. I’m looking for Moe Brown and Larry Freeman to step up in 2008. In fact, they probably have no choice.
8. Is The Secondary As Good As Advertised?: I believe so. They played well last season as USC had the top passing defense in the SEC. Captain Munnerlyn is one of the best cover corners in the SEC, while I’m still looking for nominations for a better safety combo than Emanuel Cook and Darian Stewart. I think this is the year the secondary will emerge as one of the best in the country. The first litmus test will come Sept. 13 when Georgia QB Matthew Stafford comes to town.
9. Will New Defensive Coordinator Ellis Johnson Make A Significant Difference?: It didn’t take Johnson long this past spring to figure out that the USC defense lacked physicality, a trait shared by most of the top defenses in the SEC. Johnson will demand the defense play aggressively, with tenacity and, yes, with the same physical style his Mississippi State and Alabama teams showed earlier in his career. In my opinion, Johnson is the perfect coordinator for players like Jasper Brinkley, Eric Norwood, Emanuel Cook and Ladi Ajiboye. All of them play fast and want to get after the ball carrier.
10. Will USC Survive The Season-Ending Five-Game Gauntlet?: If the first seven games of the 2008 season play out the way I expect them too, USC will have no worse than a 6-1 record heading into the final five game stretch starting Oct. 18 with a home game against LSU. After that, the Gamecocks host Tennessee and Arkansas before finishing up with road contests at Florida and Clemson. Last season, USC flunked the five-game test. It must find a way to win at least two or three of those games (obviously, USC fans hope one of the wins comes against Clemson) or USC will find itself fighting for a berth in the PapaJohns.Com Bowl. The answer to your question is no, I don’t want to spend a week in late December in Birmingham. I’ve been there enough times.
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Scott Hood. Since February of 2005, Scott has covered the South Carolina football, men's basketball and baseball programs for GamecockCentral. He may be reached by email at scottblog(at)gamecockcentral.com. Replace (at) with @.