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Muschamp to SEC foes: Enjoy it while you can

A familiar sight in Saturday's game: Freshman QB handing off to freshman RB (Chris Gillespie, Gamecok Central)

For the third straight game, South Carolina started a true freshman at quarterback (Brandon McIlwain) in Saturday’s 24-13 loss to Texas A&M at Williams-Brice Stadium.

But the Gamecocks’ heavy reliance on extremely young and raw players didn’t stop there.

The top two rushers were a redshirt freshman (A.J. Turner) and a true freshman making his long-anticipated debut (Rico Dowdle). Together, Turner and Dowdle accounted for 99.4 percent of the Gamecocks net rushing yards (160 of 161).

Moreover, a true freshman tied for the team high in receptions with five (Chavis Dawkins). All 22 receptions by the Gamecocks were made by freshmen and sophomores, and that number doesn’t include redshirt sophomore Deebo Samuel or true freshman Bryan Edwards, both of whom missed the game due to ailing hamstrings.

Yes, the Gamecocks are very, very young on offense.

But USC head coach Will Muschamp is confident those same players will continue to develop.

So, while the Gamecocks dropped to 2-3 with stunned border rival Georgia coming to Columbia next Saturday (7:30 p.m., SEC Network) for the second of five straight home games, Muschamp issued a warning to future SEC opponents.

“Our guys fought hard, but we’re not in this for a consolation prize. We’re in this to win and that’s the bottom line,” Muschamp said. “We want to win now. We are going to do what we need to do. We made a lot of improvements from last week, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

“It’s very frustrating for us. They’d better enjoy it while they can get it, I can tell you that.”

Dowdle’s solid running electrified the Gamecocks offense at times, finishing with 47 yards on nine carries, averaging 5.2 yards per attempt. His longest run was 12 yards.

“He runs through contact and he’s an explosive runner,” Muschamp said. “A lot of times on the zone read, you have that defensive end lagging down the line. You’re able to get that punch and able to run through contact. That’s something you need, and he’s got some strength about him, a good lower body and some explosive power.”

Getting Samuel and Edwards healthy is critically important for the Gamecocks offense to take the next step and develop consistency, Muschamp said.

“Deebo and Bryan very sparingly practiced throughout the entire week,” Muschamp said. “It’s really hard for anybody to develop any consistency, much less a freshman quarterback and even a fifth-year senior in Perry (Orth). We’re trying to piece it together as best we can. We’re having some of those young guys step up.”

NOTES:

-- Wide receiver Chavis Dawkins, a Byrnes High product, and offensive tackle Malik Young made their first career starts Saturday. Dawkins finished with five receptions for 17 yards, tying him with TE Hayden Hurst for most receptions by a Gamecock pass catcher. Dawkins came into the game with just one reception for 13 yards on the season. However, the absence of Deebo Samuel (third straight game) and Bryan Edwards because of hamstring injuries forced him into extended duty.

-- A.J. Turner’s 75-yard TD run on the Gamecocks’ first offensive play marked the second time this season the Gamecocks has scored within the opening 17 seconds of regulation. Two weeks ago, Turner’s long kickoff return against East Carolina set up McIlwain’s 9-yard TD run on USC’s first play.

-- Before Turner’s 75-yard TD run, the longest run from scrimmage this season had been 25 yards on an option pitch by David Williams late in the East Carolina game. It was the longest play from scrimmage allowed by Texas A&M since 2013 and the longest run allowed by the Aggies in over 20 years. Turner finished with 113 yards rushing on 10 carries for his first career 100-yard rushing performance.

-- USC’s 161 yards rushing on 35 carries was a single game season high, eclipsing the previous high of 121 yards against Vanderbilt in the season opener. Additionally, USC’s 378 total yards was likewise a season best.

-- Muschamp on the fake punt call that resulted in a 36-yard completion from punter Sean Kelly to Hayden Hurst: “We needed something explosive to happen. They came down and scored on their first drive of the second half and had all the momentum, so you call those plays in those situations. It’s more about swinging momentum back in your favor. That’s why we called it and our players executed it very well.”

-- The Gamecocks had four different players complete a pass on Saturday (McIlwain, Orth, Kelly, Hurst) for the first time since 2013 against Costal Carolina.

-- Hurst’s 90 receiving yards was a career high. “He has really good ball skills and made a nice catch over the middle in traffic,” Muschamp said. “Going into the year, I felt he was going to be a difference maker. He certainly has been, especially with the absence of our playmakers. He is going to keep getting better. This is his first year of playing a bunch. He’s a really good athlete.” Hurst now has 24 receptions for 302 yards in five games this season.

-- Defensively, safety D.J. Smith collected a career-high nine tackles. Freshman Keir Thomas made his first career start at defensive tackle, while freshman T.J. Brunson saw his most action of the season at linebacker. Darius English recorded his team-high fifth sack of the season. On the same play, he forced his second fumble of the season. The 422 total yards amassed by Texas A&M was a season low for the Aggies.

-- Elliott Fry booted a pair of 43-yard field goals + 1 extra point (extending his consecutive PAT streak to 131) for seven points on Saturday. He now has 317 career points, moving him to within 13 points of USC’s all-time leader scorer Collin Mackie (330). Fry is tied for 19th place on the SEC’s all-time scoring list. Fry also missed field goal attempts from 43 and 44 yards. “I have a lot of confidence in Elliott and we will continue to toss him back out there,” Muschamp said.

-- The 36-yard fake punt completion from Kelly to Hurst tied for the second-longest pass completion of the season for the Gamecocks. The only longer completion was a 42-yard catch by Edwards.

WEEK 5 SEC RESULTS (Oct. 1):

Arkansas 52, Alcorn State 10

Florida 13, Vanderbilt 6

Tennessee 34, Georgia 31

Auburn 58, Louisiana-Monroe 7

Texas A&M 24, South Carolina 13

Alabama 34, Kentucky 6

Ole Miss 48, Memphis 28

LSU 42, Missouri 7

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