With Marcus Satterfield and the Gamecocks unsure of when Luke Doty will be allowed to take the field this season, South Carolina’s quarterback position is approaching a crossroads.

The Gamecocks have one more practice and a scrimmage this week with Satterfield wanting to name a starting quarterback “as soon as possible,” in case Doty isn’t ready for the season opener.

“With the remainder of this week and this weekend with the scrimmage, how people handle it and the tempo of getting in and out of our huddles is going to be crucial. Whoever does that the best. We’re not looking for someone to go out there and win the Heisman trophy,” Satterfield said.

“We’re looking for someone to get the play, communicate the play, execute the play with good tempo and take care of the ball and make sure all the skill guys we have in the unit are able to showcase their talents. Whoever does that the best is going to play for us.”

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South Carolina will practice one more time Friday night before a Saturday scrimmage at Williams-Brice, the second of the preseason.

It’ll give Satterfield another chance to evaluate the healthy quarterbacks on the roster and collect as many data points knowing he wants to have in his head a starter as quickly as he can.

“’I’m sure coach Beamer and I will have many discussions about that. I want it done as soon as possible,” he said. “As soon as someone separates themselves enough to make that decision, then of course coach Beamer would be the one responsible for laying out that information.”

Right now the Gamecocks have four healthy passers—transfer Jason Brown, freshman Colten Gauthier, walk-on Connor Jordan and Zeb Noland, a graduate assistant turned quarterback—with first-team reps being spread out between all four.

Satterfield said South Carolina doesn’t “really have a number one right now” and they’ll put all four in “rapid competitive situations” to judge how they’d do in an actual game.

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“We don’t have time to wait. We have to figure out who that starter can be so they can move on and our offense move on. We don’t want to let it linger. If you have two quarterbacks you don’t have one,” Satterfield said. “So we have to figure out who’s going to be pulling the trigger. When we do that, we’ll commit to that guy and just move straight ahead. Them, Colten and Connor, all four are fighting at this point.”

The prognosis on Doty could ultimately come soon with his cast coming off at some point in the near future but until Doty is back in the fold the Gamecocks will need to have someone ready to lead the offense against Eastern Illinois Sept. 4.

The next few practices will be imperative for Satterfield from an evaluation standpoint with ball security being priority number one.

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“This sounds cliché but they have to take care of the football and value the football. They can’t just be reckless with it and throw it up in the middle of the field or with the ball handling. They can be young but they have to have the maturity to take care of the football,” he said.

“The communication, they have to be able to communicate and control the tempo. All the different tempos we play with on offense they have to be able to execute those, whether it’s slow or fast…These guys have all taken hold of it and not flinching. I’m really pleased with where they are.”

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