The New Offensive Line Reality
posted by Scott Hood, Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Unfortunately, reality has now set in.
As a result, Wolford and head coach Steve Spurrier have, in my opinion, adopted a different philosophy as the 2009 season has moved along – rather than move guys in and out of the lineup, they’ve settled on a core group and will work with those players to try to improve the overall performance of the offensive line.
And with a brutal five-game stretch remaining, the offensive line could hold the key to USC’s fortunes the rest of the way.
Wolford all but confirmed the new approach Monday night when we spoke with him after practice. Even though the Vanderbilt game was still five days away, he had already decided to start the same five guys against the Commodores that started in Tuscaloosa.
That decision has Spurrier’s blessing, based on my conversation with the head coach after Tuesday’s press conference.
So much for competition. But, I suspect, there’s probably a good reason for that.
By this point, it’s evident there are eight offensive linemen Wolford trusts enough to put into the games: T.J. Johnson, Lemuel Jeanpierre, Terrence Campbell (injured right now), Hutch Eckerson, Kyle Nunn (a 50 snap player, according to Wolford), Garrett Anderson, Quintin Richardson (who’s back healthy) and Jarriel King.
Hutch Batchelor, of course, was part of that group as well but it’s likely his career with the Gamecocks is finished and he’ll head home to Haleyville, Ala. at the end of the semester.
There are four other offensive linemen on the roster with at least three years invested into the program: Pierre Andrews, Seaver Brown, Kevin Young and Ryan Broadhead.
Yet, when you glance at the depth chart, none of those four guys are anywhere to be found. Instead, the backup at left guard and left tackle is walk-on Garrett Chisolm, who joined the program two months ago, while true freshman Nick Allison is behind Johnson at right guard.
Neither of them has played a snap in a game except for Chisolm on special teams.
Anderson and Richardson are listed as the backup to Jeanpierre and Eckerson at center and right tackle, respectively.
By virtue of the depth chart, is it reasonable to assume Wolford believes Chisolm and Allison are better than Andrews, Brown, Young and Broadhead? Yes.
That’s a problem. And something that should never happen in a major college football program. But it has with USC.
What do Andrews, Brown, Young and Broadhead all have in common? They were part of the highly touted 2006 offensive line class that was rated seventh best nationally by Rivals.com.
Oops.
By this point, I think it’s fair to say the 2006 O-Line class has been a bust. Anderson (ironically, the only one who hasn’t redshirted) has had a good career, and Eckerson has contributed. The others have done little in their careers except play an occasional snap on special teams or idle time away on the injured list.
Remember, the O-line class also included Clarence Bailey, who never made it onto campus.
Who gets the blame? Former offensive line coach John Hunt? Former recruiting coordinator David Reaves? Spurrier? The players?
I contend they all share the burden. As far as the players are concerned, either they have failed to fulfill their potential or play up to their abilities, or they just weren’t that good to begin with.
Since the most of the offensive linemen signed as part of the Class of 2006 has fallen far short of expectations, it has put USC behind the eight-ball offensively.
It has also convinced Wolford that he must rectify the situation as soon as possible, which is why USC has accepted verbal commitments from seven new linemen for the 2010 class, although JUCO Eliot Williams is a question mark academically.
Right now, 10 of the 15 offensive linemen remaining on the roster are junior or seniors. As a result, the offensive line will look far different two years from now in 2011 than it does today. By then, numbers at the position should be dominated by freshmen and sophomores. As seniors, Nunn and Richardson should be the leaders. That could change if USC decides to pursue some JUCOs.
Hopefully, though, there will be a lot more quality depth.
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When offensive line coach Eric Wolford arrived at South Carolina in January, one of his calling cards was continuous spirited competition at each of the five positions.
Unfortunately, reality has now set in.
As a result, Wolford and head coach Steve Spurrier have, in my opinion, adopted a different philosophy as the 2009 season has moved along – rather than move guys in and out of the lineup, they’ve settled on a core group and will work with those players to try to improve the overall performance of the offensive line.
And with a brutal five-game stretch remaining, the offensive line could hold the key to USC’s fortunes the rest of the way.
Wolford all but confirmed the new approach Monday night when we spoke with him after practice. Even though the Vanderbilt game was still five days away, he had already decided to start the same five guys against the Commodores that started in Tuscaloosa.
That decision has Spurrier’s blessing, based on my conversation with the head coach after Tuesday’s press conference.
So much for competition. But, I suspect, there’s probably a good reason for that.
By this point, it’s evident there are eight offensive linemen Wolford trusts enough to put into the games: T.J. Johnson, Lemuel Jeanpierre, Terrence Campbell (injured right now), Hutch Eckerson, Kyle Nunn (a 50 snap player, according to Wolford), Garrett Anderson, Quintin Richardson (who’s back healthy) and Jarriel King.
Hutch Batchelor, of course, was part of that group as well but it’s likely his career with the Gamecocks is finished and he’ll head home to Haleyville, Ala. at the end of the semester.
There are four other offensive linemen on the roster with at least three years invested into the program: Pierre Andrews, Seaver Brown, Kevin Young and Ryan Broadhead.
Yet, when you glance at the depth chart, none of those four guys are anywhere to be found. Instead, the backup at left guard and left tackle is walk-on Garrett Chisolm, who joined the program two months ago, while true freshman Nick Allison is behind Johnson at right guard.
Neither of them has played a snap in a game except for Chisolm on special teams.
Anderson and Richardson are listed as the backup to Jeanpierre and Eckerson at center and right tackle, respectively.
By virtue of the depth chart, is it reasonable to assume Wolford believes Chisolm and Allison are better than Andrews, Brown, Young and Broadhead? Yes.
That’s a problem. And something that should never happen in a major college football program. But it has with USC.
What do Andrews, Brown, Young and Broadhead all have in common? They were part of the highly touted 2006 offensive line class that was rated seventh best nationally by Rivals.com.
Oops.
By this point, I think it’s fair to say the 2006 O-Line class has been a bust. Anderson (ironically, the only one who hasn’t redshirted) has had a good career, and Eckerson has contributed. The others have done little in their careers except play an occasional snap on special teams or idle time away on the injured list.
Remember, the O-line class also included Clarence Bailey, who never made it onto campus.
Who gets the blame? Former offensive line coach John Hunt? Former recruiting coordinator David Reaves? Spurrier? The players?
I contend they all share the burden. As far as the players are concerned, either they have failed to fulfill their potential or play up to their abilities, or they just weren’t that good to begin with.
Since the most of the offensive linemen signed as part of the Class of 2006 has fallen far short of expectations, it has put USC behind the eight-ball offensively.
It has also convinced Wolford that he must rectify the situation as soon as possible, which is why USC has accepted verbal commitments from seven new linemen for the 2010 class, although JUCO Eliot Williams is a question mark academically.
Right now, 10 of the 15 offensive linemen remaining on the roster are junior or seniors. As a result, the offensive line will look far different two years from now in 2011 than it does today. By then, numbers at the position should be dominated by freshmen and sophomores. As seniors, Nunn and Richardson should be the leaders. That could change if USC decides to pursue some JUCOs.
Hopefully, though, there will be a lot more quality depth.
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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 @.