Gamecocks enjoying year two of Clayton White's 'fun scheme'

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On a defense loaded with contrasting styles and personalities, how do you get everybody involved? With one of the most experienced linebacking corps in the SEC, a potential first-round draft pick at nickel in Cam Smith, and a budding defensive line, what keeps everything ticking?

For second-year defensive coordinator Clayton White, it comes down to maximizing individual roles in a team sport. It started last season when he arrived from Western Kentucky and began installing his 4-2-5 system, and has continued on through the summer and into fall camp in 2022 as everyone gains comfort and stability within the scheme.

“It’s not too hard of a scheme to learn,” linebacker Mohamed Kaba said. “It’s an easy scheme to learn, but it’s a fun scheme at the same time.”

Kaba has seen significant time since he arrived in Columbia, playing in all but one of South Carolina’s games over the past two seasons. The transition from his freshman to sophomore season involved learning the new scheme and a new coaching staff. Now as he jumps from his sophomore to his junior season, the possibilities are entirely different.

There is an opportunity not only to thrive in the current scheme but to add to it and help it evolve from what it was in year one. Learning is a two-way street, and learning from his players is part of what makes White’s defense so unique.

“We can have input in some of the things that we do,” Kaba said. “We have a lot of things like blitzes that we can tweak up a little bit, you know. Coverages that you won’t see in normal defenses; we just have fun with those things.”

Kaba is not alone in terms of players in the linebacking group with his enjoyment of the scheme. It’s a group anchored by Sherrod Greene, who has been around the block more than anyone else on the roster — literally. Greene is the oldest player on the roster, 24, now entering his sixth season of college football. He only played in White’s scheme for three games last season before suffering a season-ending injury against Georgia.

But from his leadership position and experience with the program, he can see how many players have developed and understands how the development manifests itself in White’s scheme.

“The way Clayton White’s defense is set up, everybody can make plays,” Greene said. “The play is not just designed for just one person. If one person doesn’t do the job, another person can fill in for him and make up for it. His defense is available for everybody to make plays, not just one person.”

The ability for everyone to “make plays” as Greene references are the tip of the iceberg, where preparation beforehand meets seizing a moment in a game. It is something South Carolina showed flashes of last season, but ultimately will need to take another jump in. The Gamecocks still had a porous defense particularly up front, surrendering at least 100 rushing yards in 10 out of 13 contests and 30+ points five times.

Maturity and experience can help bridge the gap between where the defense is and where it needs to be by the end of the season, but not just in terms of being more acclimated to in-game situations or having a better knowledge of the playbook. For White and his players, it is about turning those things around and harnessing them into a productive tool on the field — speed.

Defensive backs coach Torrian Gray, a former safety under Shane Beamer’s father Frank at Virginia Tech and in the NFL, has played an important role in implementing the schemes and helping transform the mental sharpness into physical playmaking.

“To be able to see things conceptually based on alignments, a lot of stuff is just pre-play,” safety R.J. Roderick said about Gray. “Things that he’s taught us to look at pre-play, maybe reading keys and things like that, it allows us to play way more fast.”

Last year, the defensive process was rooted in learning where to be and what to do. Now it is about making plays and creating action. And there is one thing everyone involved with the defense can agree on: speed is where the fun comes in.

“The ability to fly around,” Roderick said is the most enjoyable part about playing in the scheme. “Once you get your keys, you already know what you’re doing so you know what’s next, and it just allows you to play fast.”