Grading the Gamecocks: Ole Miss
SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS FOOTBALL
Quarterback: A
Jake Bentley played his best game of the season, passing for a season-high 363 yards and throwing for two touchdowns. He also ran for six yards and had the team’s game-winning touchdown.
The biggest thing was he played virtually mistake-free football, not throwing a pick and completing almost 69 percent of his passes.
Running back: B+
Outside of missing a few holes, including one on fourth and short, the running backs had an incredibly productive day. Ty’Son Williams had 30 yards rushing and over 100 yards receiving despite playing in just two quarters.
Also see: Inside Jake Bentley's career day
Mon Denson had his biggest day, averaging 8.5 yards per carry and busting the biggest run of the day—a 69-yarder—that set up Bentley’s touchdown. That came after Williams and Rico Dowdle both left the game with injuries in the first half.
Wide receiver/tight end: A-
A few drops bring this grade down a little but the receivers turned in another solid performance. Bryan Edwards had one of the best catches of his career, hauling in a pass with one hand - while fending off a defender with the other - for a 75-yard touchdown catch and run.
Shi Smith had three catches for 82 yards and Josh Vann hauled in three, including his first-career touchdown catch.
Offensive line: A
South Carolina’s offensive line is having a quietly great season, and it continued Saturday. They didn’t allow a sack—Will Muschamp said the lone takedown came on a missed protection from the running back—and the Gamecocks rushed for 147 yards and averaged four yards a carry.
This came with a makeshift offensive line after losing starting left tackle Dennis Daley last week and the starter at left tackle today, Malik Young, early in the second half.
Also see: See what Will Muschamp had to say postgame
Defensive line: C
This was probably the most productive group on a defense that struggled for three quarters to stop Ole Miss. The defensive line gave up 237 yards rushing but had a very good final four drives.
They sacked Jordan Ta’amu three times, including a huge sack on one of the final drives from Javon Kinlaw, and were able to put pressure on the quarterback late in the game to preserve a win.
Linebacker: D
T.J. Brunson’s stats are a little misleading with 15 tackles. He was everywhere, but that was a product of the Rebels’ skill players spending a lot of time in the second level. Brunson did have a big sack late but the Gamecock linebackers struggled to stop the run with a handful of miscues defensively.
Also see: Josh Low's instant analysis
Secondary: C-
A caveat for this: if it wasn’t for Jaycee Horn this grade would have been a lot lower. Ta’amu passed for 379 yards and had at least three passes that went for over 20 yards with a few big third and fourth down conversions.
The Gamecock secondary struggled to stay on receivers, but buckled down the last few drives playing man-to-man coverage.
Jaycee Horn had a fantastic day with five tackles and two pass breakups, including one on fourth down to essentially win the game.
Special teams: A
This was the game the special teams came together for the Gamecocks. Deebo Samuel was himself again, housing the opening kickoff. Parker White hit both of his field goals and all of his extra points, and Joseph Charlton averaged 46.2 yards per punt with one inside the 20-yard line.
