The defensive backfield plan this spring
The Gamecocks aren’t shy about playing freshmen, especially in the secondary, and aren’t shy after their freshman years about moving them around to different spots.
Jaycee Horn did that two years ago, starting at nickel before moving to corner last season and the same might be true for Jammie Robinson this season as the coaches try to figure out what they have on the back end.
“Right now, we kind of try to teach everything by concept, so we'll interchange guys. They may get a heavy dose of nickel one day, and the next day, they're at safety primarily,” Will Muschamp said. “My biggest thing is just to understand the concept so you can have some guys that are interchangeable, not just put the next guy on the depth chart, but put the next best player in.”
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The Gamecocks seemingly have three guys they know will be back there in Robinson, Horn and Israel Mukuamu who all logged significant snaps last season.
Horn will likely stay at corner but it’s still up in the air what the other two will do. Mukuamu can play corner and safety while Robinson was a Freshman All-American as a nickel back while spending a little time at safety.
Where they play will likely be determined by how a few now-sophomores continue to develop.
“We need John (Dixon) and Cam (Smith) to come on for us and be more consistent guys. In a perfect world, that's what we'd like to see,” Muschamp said. “Jammie's a guy that can play at safety and the nickel position, and any type of dime. I think now that we'll be able to have enough depth where we'll be able to play at a dime unit on the field.”
The Gamecocks also have RJ Roderick, who started 11 games last year at safety with 55 tackles and two interceptions.
Last year safety seemed like a weak link of the secondary and the Gamecocks are hoping to get better play from it this year heading into spring.
They have options with Roderick and Robinson but bring in an influx of talent as well with freshmen Dominick Hill—who will most likely play corner—and O’Donnell Fortune, who will take almost all of his reps at safety this spring.
“We need to get better at the safety position. Israel and Jaycee did some good things for us at corner,” Muschamp said. “Cam and John Dixon need to come along. Dominick Hill's a young player that we feel like's moved around well. O'Donnell Fortune we're going to play at safety.”
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Whatever that backfield looks like will obviously have a smattering of old and new. Roderick, Mukuamu and Horn are all in year three while Robinson is just a sophomore, coming off a stellar freshman year where he had 62 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and a pick.
The coaches are also hoping to see the oft-injured Jaylin Dickerson finally healthy as well as see if Shilo Sanders can fit into the equation as well.
“RJ and Jammie Robinson had a fantastic freshman year, can play safety, can play nickel, been a very productive player for us. Shilo Sanders needs to continue to come on for us. Jaylin Dickerson's back healthy,” Muschamp said. “So to get those guys back that have played good football for us, Darius Rush, we need too, those guys to show up and be productive players."
