South Carolina Gamecocks offensive coordinator on

The first thing Mike Bobo did when he arrived at South Carolina was head out on the recruiting trail, tying up some loose ends and introducing himself to a few committed prospects.

Now comes the other integral part of his pre-spring practice duties, which is designing an offense to match his personnel’s skill set.

“We want to be able to spread people out and looking at this roster, I think that's what we're in the process right now of trying to figure out what the best personnel groups are to attack the teams that we're going to play this year,” Bobo said. “What gives us the best chance to be successful as an offense? And that's something that you obviously work through during spring practice. You obviously work through during fall camp when you get an influx of freshman and sometimes that can change from spring to fall."

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Bobo spent almost a decade at Georgia, constructing a few different ways to get after defenses, designing run-heavy offenses with the likes of Todd Gurley and more pass-happy systems with Aaron Murray.

Right now he’s still in the evaluation process of scheming things up for this 2020 group of Gamecocks, but knows a few core principles of what he wants to run.

“General philosophy for me, and I think it, not think I know it aligns with Coach's philosophy is, we want to be a physical football team,” Bobo said. “We want to be able to run the football. I believe you have to run the football in this league to be successful and contend for the championship. But, at the same time we want to have balance.”

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Bobo adapted his offense from Georgia to Colorado State where they averaged over 400 yards five times in Bobo’s five seasons and over 30 points per game three times.

He changed his pro-style offenses at Georgia to more of a spread style offense with what he called more innovative changes in the run game with RPOs mixed in. He said there won’t be an official decision on what the Gamecocks run until August.

“We want to attack defenses,” Bobo said. “And it's hard playing defense nowadays with everything that offenses are allowed to do and you know, tempo and the RPO game and you know, just what you're allowed to do offensively and we got to take advantage of some of those rules. But again, it's got to fit our personnel, what we can play fast.”

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The Gamecocks signed almost 20 prospects on National Signing Day with seven offensive players enrolling early in quarterback Luke Doty, running back MarShawn Lloyd, receiver Mike Wyman and offensive linemen Trai Jones, Tyshawn Wannamaker, Vershon Lee and Jazton Turnetine.

Bobo will get a chance to work with all of those freshmen one-on-one this spring to work them into the offensive system with five more—Jaheim Bell, Rashad Amos, Rico Powers, Eric Shaw and Da’Qon Stewart—and whoever else the Gamecocks bring in into the fold this summer.

They’ll spend the spring installing with the players who are on campus and Bobo said the Gamecocks will spend the first few weeks of fall camp evaluating what they have before tailoring the offense to the team’s strengths.

“It just depends on the guys that you've got coming in, the guys, knock on wood, that stay healthy, but you got to be willing to adapt as a coach and that's what we're talking through right now and it's going to allow what gives us the best chance to be successful as a team,” he said. “Not really as an offense, as a team.”