McClendon breaks down receivers on eve of first scrimmage

For South Carolina receivers coach Bryan McClendon, Saturday’s scheduled full contact scrimmage at Williams-Brice Stadium will not be the definitive moment as far as determining spots on the depth chart for Game 1 at Vanderbilt in less than three weeks.

Instead, McClendon views the scrimmage as merely another practice.

“Every practice is just as important as tomorrow’s scrimmage,” McClendon told reporters Friday afternoon following a team walk-through. “The scrimmage is just another part of it. (As a coach) you’re not out there on the field with the guys reminding them of certain things before and after each snap. You have a chance to send them out there and say, “Go do it.” From that perspective, it’s the most realistic you can get to an actual game.”

After fully participating in practice Thursday, Deebo Samuel and Bryan Edwards should scrimmage Saturday even though lately they have been nursing hamstring ailments.

“You have to be very careful with hamstrings,” McClendon said. “Deebo was out most of all last year with a hamstring. If you’re not managing it the right way and you put them out there too fast, that’s when you (aggravate it) and you’re out 2-3 months. We’re trying to prevent that.

“But those guys are progressing very well. They did everything yesterday. We’ll keep those guys coming along.”

Even though he has just 12 career receptions, Samuel displayed flashes of his potential late last season when he logged nine catches against The Citadel and Clemson.

“Deebo has a wide skill set,” McClendon said. “He is hard to guard in the sense he plays with a lot of strength. He is very quick, has good hands and he can make catches in traffic, which is essential in this league considering how good DBs are. He tracks the ball very well and does a good job with the ball in his hands. He is unique in the sense he can do a lot of things across the board.”

Saturday’s scrimmage is critically important for two players that have recently transitioned to wide receiver – Lorenzo Nunez and Jamari Smith.

Nunez, of course, moved from quarterback over the summer and has worked 12 practices at wide receiver, so, although an exceptional athlete, he has a ways to go as far as learning the position is concerned.

“He is doing better,” McClendon said. “A lot of people see a great athlete and just think he can be a receiver. He has made some plays, but when you’re a receiver, you’re up against the arguably the other team’s best athletes at DB as well. The learning curve is very steep, but it’s also very short. He has to make sure he is gaining ground every single day.”

Nunez is progressing towards becoming a regular part of the receiver rotation. Right now, though, he is somebody McClendon would use in spots. Will he be ready for significant action on Sept. 1?

“That remains to be seen,” McClendon said. “It’s very early to say one way or the other. He is doing well.”

Smith looks to have finally found a home at slot receiver after bouncing between offense and defense over the past three years.

“Jamari has had a really good camp,” McClendon said. “He has worked extremely hard. He is excited just to have a home where he can hang his hat and learn one position. He is in great shape. He takes great pride in getting the small details down. Guys like that tend to work themselves into being pretty good.”

Freshman Chavis Dawkins (Duncan) and Javon Charleston (redshirted in 2015) took some first-team offensive snaps in Thursday’s practice. Both players “have a good chance’ of working themselves into the wide receiver rotation.

With Kiel Pollard working exclusively at tight end, McClendon intends to get the four true freshmen receivers ready to play in 2016. Chances are, though, one or more will redshirt. Right now, everybody is still in the running to play in 2016.

“If you ask me who won’t play, I’d say nobody,” McClendon said. “They’re just working hard and getting caught up and ready to play. We’ll make a final decision closer to game time.”

Pollard, listed at 6-0 and 230 pounds, possesses a “unique skill set” allowing him to move around to different positions. He was the Class 6A Offensive Player of the Year in Georgia after leading Colquitt County High School to a 15-0 record and the state championship. Colquitt was ranked No. 2 in the final USA Today high school poll.

“He is at a position where we can utilize his skill set the best,” McClendon said. “Did it surprise me he was moved to (tight end). No, it didn’t.”

McClendon’s sense of urgency is high because he expects Vanderbilt’s experienced defense to offer the young Gamecocks receivers a huge challenge.

“Those guys have played a bunch of ball and seen the best this league has to offer and played against it, so I would expect them to do what they do well,” McClendon said. “They do a great job of covering and getting after the quarterback and mixing up fronts. I wouldn’t expect anything different, especially against us.”

McClendon wants seven or eight receivers fully prepared and ready to go for every game.

“You like guys getting into the flow of the game and being able to play and work through a lot of different situations to feel comfortable enough to make plays,” McClendon said. “In order to do that, you can’t have too many. But you want to have enough to keep people fresh and playing fast, and constantly putting pressure on defenses.”

NOTES

-- Muschamp said any and all decisions regarding redshirts will not be made until the conclusion of preseason camp, and possibly not until after the season has started.

-- Regarding David Williams’ tumble down the running back pecking order, Muschamp insisted nobody “should read a lot into where guys are repping right now. . .we’re rolling a bunch of guys in there and getting them reps.” Muschamp said Thursday that redshirt freshman A.J. Turner had “distanced himself” from the rest of the RB field.

-- Muschamp described Saturday’s scrimmage as a “huge judgment day" for many players in terms of how they respond to a game-like situation. “I told our guys, the choices and decisions you make on the football field, what kind of football player are you, what kind of toughness you have and what effort you display, Saturday is a huge judgment day,” he said.

-- Muschamp said the Gamecocks have to improve their team speed on special teams. He is also concerned with ball security on kick and punt returns.