It might have looked and felt a little different Saturday night, but the Gamecocks were finally back on the football field after what felt like an eternity of a week.
After seeing their head coach fired on Sunday, South Carolina took on Missouri Saturday, ultimately losing 17-10 but having a few intriguing performances in the loss.
The highlight was Luke Doty playing the entire second half offensively, but there were a few other notable performances and grades to hand out.
Quarterback: B
The first and second half grades are vastly, vastly different, but Luke Doty did enough to put this grade as a B for this week. Doty showed flashes of what he can be in his first real action of the year, completing 14 of his 23 passes for 130 yards with a pick but rushing 11 times for 59 yards (5.4 yards per attempt).
He certainly did enough in the second half to give South Carolina a chance, and he'll learn from the late interception.
Also see: Evaluating Luke Doty's performance Saturday
Running back: C+
It was another off night for the run game, in part because of some poor offensive line play, but Kevin Harris averaged just 3.6 yards on 16 carres with a long of just 13 while Deshaun Fenwick rushed five times for seven yards. Fenwick did have the team's lone touchdown.
The two did have good days in the pass game, though, combining for five catches for 29 yards, which does boost their grade some.
Wide receiver/tight end: B-
Losing Shi Smith really threw the game plan out of the window on the first drive, but the group actually elevated its game after that with some pretty good play. Nick Muse had 67 yards, including a 25-yarder, Jalen Brooks made a few contested catches and Josh Vann had two catches for 22 yards, both coming on third down conversions.
Trey Adkins also made a few contested catches as well, which was good to see for South Carolina.
Offensive line: D
This unit continues to struggle, which is one of the reasons Mike Bobo opted to put Doty in the game. South Carolina couldn't run the ball much at all Saturday and the offensive line struggled getting consistent push up front all game.
Also see: Instant analysis from Saturday's loss
Quarterbacks were sacked three times (Hill twice, Doty once) and the Gamecocks allowed 15 quarterback pressures with 10 coming from the line: Jakai Moore, 7; Dylan Wonnum, 4; Sadarius Hutcherson, 2.
Defensive line: B
Line defensive line played much better in the second half compared to the first with the Tigers rushing for just 26 yards and averaging less than two yards per carry after halftime.
They'd also hurry Connor Bazelak eight times as a team, seven of which came from the line. Zacch Pickens, Keir Thomas and JJ Enagbare each had two, and Enagbare made a nice sack on third down in the second half.
Linebackers: A
There's not much more you can say about Ernest Jones. Damani Staley also had a good game statistically with a team-leading 12 tackles.
Secondary: B+
This is admittedly grading on a curve, but any time a unit gives up just 6.2 yards per attempt and picks a ball off right after three starters opted out, that's good enough for a good grade. Cam Smith did give up a touchdown despite good coverage, but responded well with an interception right after.
It's a group that showed some much-needed moxie after a rough week.
Also see: The latest coaching hot board
Special teams: B-
The Gamecocks did have two punts downed at the one yard line (although there was one questionable call) and Mitch Jeter kicked one ball out of bounds but Kai Kroeger had a good day punting (44.7 yard average), Parker White hit his lone field goal of the day (a 47-yarder) and Jeter's other two kicks were touchbacks.
A solid day from the special teams unit.
Coaching: B
It wasn't perfect by any stretch—the Gamecocks got conservative late in the first half, predominantly—but Mike Bobo did switch things up at quarterback in the second half, which worked for the most part, and Travaris Robinson was able to make some defensive adjustments that worked almost to perfection in the second half.
