RECAP: Muschamp previews Clemson

South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp previewed the Gamecocks' annual rivalry showdown with Clemson during his weekly teleconference Tuesday.

Muschamp had the following to say during his press conference:

** Muschamp starts by recapping Western Carolina. Team had 16 explosive plays, eight by Rico Dowdle who was the player of the game. Mason Zandi also had a good game. Darius English was the defensive player of the game. Deebo Samuel special teams player of the game.

** Clemson is a very good football team. Very deserving of their ranking. Tony Elliott does a great job with the offense. Deshaun Watson is a "fantastic" football player. He can hurt you in a lot of ways. Smart kid who does a great job in their scheme. Skill players are very explosive. Wayne Gallman is a tough, hard-nosed runner. Jordan Leggett presents a matchup problem at tight end.

** Brent Venables does a great job with their defense as well. Gets pressure up front and they're hard to block.

** Had a good practice today. Going to have to play very well at Clemson.

** On importance of Clemson game: "You hear that very quickly" when you arrive at South Carolina. Talk about winning the state every day, on the field and off the field in recruiting.

** Haven't talked much yet about recent games with Clemson, but always important for guys to understand the rivalry and the history of the game.

** I don't know that you're going to stop Watson, but you have to try to limit his opportunities. He gives you a very hard time when he extends plays. He has everything you're looking for in a quarterback. He's a great leader too.

** Athletically, Clemson's defense reminds you of Florida in the front 7. They try to attack and get vertical. Venables lets his front guys cut loose and play.

** Talked to the guys today about preparation and focus. You have to win downs and win drives to win a game. Need to go play well, play hard, fast, physical. Have to keep our composure. Preparation stays the same all the time. This is a very important game, but you don't put all of your eggs into one basket. You don't need to be motivated by the opponent you play. It's a huge game for USC and the team, but you prepare the same every week.

** Red zone success? Spend a lot of time repping that in training camp. Have to have situational awareness, but can't just talk about it, have to go rep it. It's a big focus, because it's so important on both sides of the ball. Whole goal is to make them kick field goals. Do that 60 percent of the time and that's winning football. Have a good idea each week of the tendencies that a team uses.

** Chris Moody should be good to go. Practiced today. No new injuries to report.

** The whole sideline lit up Saturday when Darius Paulk got an opportunity, because they see what type of person he is and how hard he works.

** Thanksgiving plans? "We've got practice." (laughs) Will have a great Thanksgiving lunch. Then start going over play cards for the next day.

ALSO SEE: The Insider Report - Did Gamecocks make a move with four-star OL and former commit T.J. Moore? | Four-star DL Stephon Wynn discusses visit | Top 2018 back impressed with rushing attack | Following the future - What did Gamecocks recruits do on the field this week?

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