For the last three weeks, South Carolina’s quarterback position had been under a microscope more than normal and Tuesday interim head coach explained why Collin Hill’s been the starter the last few games.

“I think he’s played well. There are times we’d like to have a play back here or there. That’s any quarterback you watch whether you’re watching him on Saturday or Sunday. There are things where you’d like to have plays over. The bottom line is we need to play better around our quarterback,” Bobo said.

“There are hundreds of things we go over offensively and I go over coaching that position that we can do better on a daily basis in a game. We’re always striving to get better. I think he’s played well. I think we need to play better around.”

Hill, who played under Bobo at Colorado State and transferred to South Carolina this offseason with Bobo, has started all seven games this year with the Gamecocks going 2-5.

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This year he’s completing 59 percent of his passes for 1,372 yards (6.7 yards per attempt) with six touchdowns and six interceptions.

After two clunkers against LSU and Texas A&M, Hill started against Ole Miss and had a bounceback game, completing 60.7 percent of his passes for 230 yards (8.2 yards per pass) with a touchdown and a pick.

He had a 134.4 rating, his third-highest of the season.

Hill did have two key miscues—an interception early in the game and misreading a RPPO handoff late—but Bobo thought his overall game was good.

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“Last week I thought he was very, very efficient and played his best game. He had one pass that got away from him on a fade route where we should have released outside but went inside and we have to see that and paint the ball on him,” Bobo said. “We had a RPO run concept that we should have handed off. Other than that, he put us in the right position. He was flawless; he was accurate. He did a nice job.”

The Gamecocks opened up the quarterback competition heading into the Ole Miss game with Hill beating out Ryan Hilinski and Luke Doty to retain the starting spot.

It was in large part because he’s able to get the Gamecocks into the right looks and run the offense.

“Collin answered that challenge and played well in the game. There was not a need for us to play anybody else in that game. I’m going to say this, okay?” Bobo said. “The best guy at every position is going to playing the game, period, that gives us the best chance to win. I’ve been coaching quarterback for a long time. I’m not an expert or guru, but I know what it takes to win at that position and get things done.”

Hill has drawn a lot of ire since the Auburn game about being the starting quarterback, which is something Bobo says comes with the territory and Hill knows that as well.

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“First of all, he plays a position that all eyes are on. We all know the nature of the position. We talk about it on our room since I started coaching,” he said. “When things are going well, you’re the best thing since sliced bread. When you’re not, it doesn’t matter what’s happening, it’s the quarterback’s fault. That’s the way it goes.”

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