South Carolina Gamecock freshmen impress in extended action
South Carolina Gamecocks football coach Will Muschamp’s never been afraid to play freshmen—and a lot of them—in big spots through two seasons.
But, through the first four games of this season, only a handful of first-year players saw consistent action. That changed against Missouri with more freshmen than usual getting action, headlined by Rosendo Louis Jr. and Israel Mukuamu.
“These guys got to play,” Muschamp said. “We wanted Rosendo and Damani (Staley) to be able to give us 30 snaps. They were right up in the high 20s. We can’t ask TJ Brunson and Sherrod Greene to play 90 snaps. They’re not going to be as effective as they can be playing 90 snaps. Those guys have to come on for us more and be more dependable players, and they will.”
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Louis Jr. played 18 snaps on defense Saturday while Staley, who’s in his second season, had 11. This was the second time the two saw extended time and the 18 snaps for Louis were a season-high. Both came in against a good, fast Missouri team to spell starters T.J. Brunson and Sherrod Greene.
Brunson, whose freshman year was similar to Louis’s in terms of participation, was excited Staley and he both got to see some significant playing time to get used to the speed of the game.
“Those guys got some real, live game experience against a good team,” Brunson said. “You can’t make it through the SEC with two linebackers, so those guys getting in and getting reps is very good for us. It takes some reps off me and Sherrod.”
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The two didn’t have the best games in their first real experience against an SEC team, combining for two tackles and having an average grade of 56.75, according to Pro Football Focus.
That will change, Brunson said, after they get more experience under their belts. Playing against Mizzou on Saturday will only help with that.
“I think a lot of it comes down to experience and seeing a team like that and how fast they can move at times and understanding you have to get your calls in and lined up,” Brunson said. “That was one of the things they struggled with, but that was something I struggled with the first time I played. That experience is the big thing and they had a good outing to go out there to see that.”
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But the two linebackers weren’t the only two to see more extended time on defense. After inconsistent or poor secondary play, Mukuamu played 11 snaps at cornerback in place of Keisean Nixon.
“Israel did a really nice job coming in as a true freshman under these circumstances against a quarterback like that,” Muschamp said. “We got guys continue to come along. (Safety) RJ Roderick made a couple nice plays on special teams. He needs to continue to come along for us; he’s a real talented guy.”
It’s still up in the air whether those guys will see similar action against No. 22 Texas A&M, but they could if some starters don’t perform.
“They don’t play good, they go on the bench,” Muschamp said.
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