Five Things We Learned From The USC-UT Game
posted by Scott Hood, Sunday, November 02, 2008
1. Our Worst Fears About SEC Officiating Are True: Contending after a conference loss that SEC officials are horrible comes off too much like sour grapes, so I’ve saved this for the right moment. Last night’s game was, quite frankly, a national embarrassment for the conference. The high school game I attended on Friday night had better officiating. The failure to call off-sides on Tennessee on the play that led to the interception by the Volunteers and three USC players being injured was gross malfeasance by the linesman at its worst. The UT defender was clearly two to three steps into the neutral zone when the ball was snapped. Also, Chris Culliver clearly forced a fumble by the Tennessee quarterback on a sack in the first quarter, but the referee ruled he was down. Finally, USC had a TD taken away when the same lineman (according to Spurrier) called the Gamecocks for an illegal formation. After watching the tape, Spurrier was wondering what the official actually saw. In short, the film doesn’t support the flag being thrown. Had the officials made the right calls in those three situations, USC probably would have won by four or five touchdowns.
2. The Running Game Is Improving By Baby Steps: Steve Spurrier quickly responded ‘No’ when he was asked Sunday whether the statistics from Saturday night’s game showed the Gamecock running game was making any progress. I understand it took 44 carries, but I think it’s key that USC totaled 100 yards rushing. There’s a psychological barrier in play that says if a team runs for less than 100 yards, they’ve had a bad day, and if they rush for more than 100 yards, it’s a good day. Since the style of football we see in the modern SEC is not that much different from the NFL, the fact the Gamecocks were able to muster 101 yards rushing is a big deal. It was the first time USC has reached the century mark since the UAB game. No. it wasn’t the greatest performance ever, but it was good enough to get the job done on Saturday night.
3. Big Plays On Defense Break The Opponent’s Spirit: The USC defense made several big plays on Saturday night, starting with the Pick-6 by Stoney Woodson and six different players accounting for the six sacks. But the biggest play of the game may have been the stop on fourth-and-inches at the USC 35 late in the third quarter when the Gamecocks led, 24-6. The defensive stop appeared to break Tennessee’s spirit because they never threatened to score again. In fact, the deepest UT moved the ball after that was its own 26. Had the Vols converted the fourth down and gone on to score a TD, it would have been a two-score game with plenty of time remaining. But the defense rose up, like they have done on many other occasions this season. Nathan Pepper’s fumble return for a TD changed the complexion of the Ole Miss game.
4. Ray Rychleski Deserves A Contract Extension Too: Defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson received a well-publicized one-year contract extension during the bye week. Well, based on the performance of the USC’s special teams this season, Ray Rychleski has earned one, as well. As usual, USC’s special teams were solid on Saturday. Ryan Succop appears back in form after converting both of his field goal attempts from 31 yards and booming four of his six kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks. Chris Culliver had a 67-yard kickoff return to change momentum after Tennessee scored their only TD of the game. USC’s special teams played an integral role in the Gamecocks enjoying superior field position all night. By the end of the night, USC’s average starting field position was its 38-yard line, while Tennessee’s average starting field position was the UT 26. In the SEC, 12 yards is a huge advantage. After nine games, USC is tied for first in the SEC in kickoff returns (25.1 yards per return) and in sole possession of first in kickoff coverage (48.3 yd net avg.). The Gamecocks are far from perfect in every category, but there is no disputing USC’s special teams have made remarkable progress this season under Rychleski’s guidance.
5. Steve Spurrier Just Wants To Win: The national perception about Steve Spurrier is that he just wants to throw the ball all over the field, no matter the situation, as if he was Mike Leach of Texas Tech. But Spurrier has always recognized the benefit of having a strong running game to accompany the passing attack. When the time came Saturday night to pull in the reins, that’s exactly what Spurrier did. After USC took a 24-0 lead midway through the third quarter, USC officially attempted just two passes in its final 21 plays. That doesn’t include the TD pass to Weslye Saunders that was called back for illegal formation. Spurrier’s statement from Sunday’s teleconference that his main priority is to win football games rings true. If that means he has to turn conservative and call a whole bunch of running plays to accomplish that goal, he’ll do it, as he showed without apologies Saturday night.
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South Carolina battered toothless Tennessee for four quarters Saturday night at Williams-Brice Stadium, emerging with a 27-6 victory that could have been much worse. USC led, 21-0, five minutes into the second quarter before shifting into cruise control. Here are five things we learned from that game:
1. Our Worst Fears About SEC Officiating Are True: Contending after a conference loss that SEC officials are horrible comes off too much like sour grapes, so I’ve saved this for the right moment. Last night’s game was, quite frankly, a national embarrassment for the conference. The high school game I attended on Friday night had better officiating. The failure to call off-sides on Tennessee on the play that led to the interception by the Volunteers and three USC players being injured was gross malfeasance by the linesman at its worst. The UT defender was clearly two to three steps into the neutral zone when the ball was snapped. Also, Chris Culliver clearly forced a fumble by the Tennessee quarterback on a sack in the first quarter, but the referee ruled he was down. Finally, USC had a TD taken away when the same lineman (according to Spurrier) called the Gamecocks for an illegal formation. After watching the tape, Spurrier was wondering what the official actually saw. In short, the film doesn’t support the flag being thrown. Had the officials made the right calls in those three situations, USC probably would have won by four or five touchdowns.
2. The Running Game Is Improving By Baby Steps: Steve Spurrier quickly responded ‘No’ when he was asked Sunday whether the statistics from Saturday night’s game showed the Gamecock running game was making any progress. I understand it took 44 carries, but I think it’s key that USC totaled 100 yards rushing. There’s a psychological barrier in play that says if a team runs for less than 100 yards, they’ve had a bad day, and if they rush for more than 100 yards, it’s a good day. Since the style of football we see in the modern SEC is not that much different from the NFL, the fact the Gamecocks were able to muster 101 yards rushing is a big deal. It was the first time USC has reached the century mark since the UAB game. No. it wasn’t the greatest performance ever, but it was good enough to get the job done on Saturday night.
3. Big Plays On Defense Break The Opponent’s Spirit: The USC defense made several big plays on Saturday night, starting with the Pick-6 by Stoney Woodson and six different players accounting for the six sacks. But the biggest play of the game may have been the stop on fourth-and-inches at the USC 35 late in the third quarter when the Gamecocks led, 24-6. The defensive stop appeared to break Tennessee’s spirit because they never threatened to score again. In fact, the deepest UT moved the ball after that was its own 26. Had the Vols converted the fourth down and gone on to score a TD, it would have been a two-score game with plenty of time remaining. But the defense rose up, like they have done on many other occasions this season. Nathan Pepper’s fumble return for a TD changed the complexion of the Ole Miss game.
4. Ray Rychleski Deserves A Contract Extension Too: Defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson received a well-publicized one-year contract extension during the bye week. Well, based on the performance of the USC’s special teams this season, Ray Rychleski has earned one, as well. As usual, USC’s special teams were solid on Saturday. Ryan Succop appears back in form after converting both of his field goal attempts from 31 yards and booming four of his six kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks. Chris Culliver had a 67-yard kickoff return to change momentum after Tennessee scored their only TD of the game. USC’s special teams played an integral role in the Gamecocks enjoying superior field position all night. By the end of the night, USC’s average starting field position was its 38-yard line, while Tennessee’s average starting field position was the UT 26. In the SEC, 12 yards is a huge advantage. After nine games, USC is tied for first in the SEC in kickoff returns (25.1 yards per return) and in sole possession of first in kickoff coverage (48.3 yd net avg.). The Gamecocks are far from perfect in every category, but there is no disputing USC’s special teams have made remarkable progress this season under Rychleski’s guidance.
5. Steve Spurrier Just Wants To Win: The national perception about Steve Spurrier is that he just wants to throw the ball all over the field, no matter the situation, as if he was Mike Leach of Texas Tech. But Spurrier has always recognized the benefit of having a strong running game to accompany the passing attack. When the time came Saturday night to pull in the reins, that’s exactly what Spurrier did. After USC took a 24-0 lead midway through the third quarter, USC officially attempted just two passes in its final 21 plays. That doesn’t include the TD pass to Weslye Saunders that was called back for illegal formation. Spurrier’s statement from Sunday’s teleconference that his main priority is to win football games rings true. If that means he has to turn conservative and call a whole bunch of running plays to accomplish that goal, he’ll do it, as he showed without apologies Saturday night.
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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 @.