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Up-tempo could help rid offense of mental mistakes

It was a wake-up call for the Gamecock offense against Kentucky: 268 yards of total offense, 177 yards passing, 4.1 yards per play (2.6 yards per rush) and just 10 points.

After the game, head coach Will Muschamp said the key to getting the offense back on track is consistency. For the players, it’s about limiting fatigue and getting rid of mental mistakes.

“We have to make sure we’re doing the little things right like lining up right, having the right alignment in the right formation,” running back A.J. Turner said. “Once we do the little things then everything else would take care of itself.”

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One of the ways to eliminate those mental mistakes is to run more up-tempo offense to match a Texas A&M offense averaging almost 77 plays per game.

After a season-low 53 offensive snaps against East Carolina, the Gamecocks responded with 65 plays against Kentucky at Commonwealth Stadium in a 17-10 loss. It was the second highest of the season, only five behind the 70 plays ran against Mississippi State.

Offensive lineman Zack Bailey said the team has “definitely” been up-tempo this week in practice because it’s trying to “dominate the line of scrimmage.”

That’s where the up-tempo style of play can help a team forget about mental mistakes.

“Sometimes the game gets to your head and it’s all about concentration,” Bailey said. “You have to be able to concentrate. Sometimes you can overthink things and that’s part of lack of concentration.”

Also see: What's A&M saying about the Gamecocks?

The Gamecocks are planning to play a wealth of young offensive guys, like they have all season, with freshmen starting at quarterback, running back and wide receiver.

Brandon McIlwain will make his third start of the season Saturday and second at home. Tight end Hayden Hurst said a fast-paced offense can be beneficial for younger players, like McIlwain, because it lets them “be athletes.”

“I think for us that helps out a lot,” Hurst said. “There’s not a lot of thinking to it: you get the play and you go. There’s not too much else going on. We’re just getting the play from Rope and we’re going.”

The Gamecocks are averaging 62.5 plays per game and it could be more with a blisteringly fast Texas A&M team coming in to Columbia. Trying to cut out mental mistakes, going up-tempo with the Gamecocks’ current scheme could help put some more points up on the board.

“We’re going to stick to what we’ve been doing,” wide receiver Terry Googer said. “It’s been working, but it’s just the mental mistakes have been costing us. We don’t see anything wrong with what we’re doing; we just have to get rid of the mental mistakes and we’ll be successful.”

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