South Carolina opens the season this weekend against Kent State, and I’m not going to sit here and pretend this is one of those games where I’m wondering who is going to win.
Carolina should win this football game.
What I’m interested in is how they win it — and who shows me something while they’re doing it.
There are some questions surrounding this South Carolina team that Kent State can begin answering. And while everybody is going to have their eyes on LaNorris Sellers — and rightfully so — there are three other guys I’ll be watching very closely.
LaNorris Sellers — QB
Let’s get the obvious one out of the way.
Sellers is the guy.
I don’t need to see him throw for 400 yards against Kent State. I don’t need five touchdown passes. Quite frankly, numbers against an opponent like this aren’t going to tell me very much.
I want to see command.
I want to see him get the offense in and out of the huddle, make the right reads, deliver the football accurately and take what the defense gives him.
Most importantly, I don’t want to see him feel like he has to put this football team on his back every other play.
We already know Sellers can make spectacular plays. We’ve seen that.
Now I want to see a veteran quarterback who understands that sometimes the best play is the boring one.
Take the eight-yard completion. Check it down. Move the chains. Live to play another down.
If Sellers does that consistently, the spectacular plays are going to come naturally.
DJ Black — WR
This may be the guy I’m most curious about offensively.
We know about the athletic ability Carolina has at wide receiver. We know what Nyck Harbor can do physically.
But championship-level offenses don’t have one guy defenses have to worry about.
They have weapons.
DJ Black has an opportunity to establish himself as another one of those weapons.
At 6-foot-2 and around 205 pounds, he’s got the size. He’s got the physical tools. Now I want to see whether he can become a guy Sellers trusts when he needs a completion.
Can he separate?
Can he make the contested catch?
Can he turn a routine completion into something bigger?
If Black emerges as a legitimate threat on the outside, suddenly defensive coordinators have another problem to deal with.
And the more problems you give a defensive coordinator, the better your offense becomes.
Judge Collier — DB
Judge Collier isn’t the young guy trying to prove he belongs anymore.
He’s one of the veterans.
And that’s exactly how I want to see him play.
South Carolina has some pieces to replace in that secondary, which means Collier has an opportunity to become one of the guys who sets the tone back there.
Against Kent State, I want to see him challenge receivers.
Get your hands on people. Play aggressively. Trust your technique. When the football is in the air, go get it.
This is the type of game where a veteran defensive back should look like a veteran defensive back.
Don’t just cover people.
Make them uncomfortable.
Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy — DL
This one becomes even more important because Dylan Stewart isn’t playing.
When you remove a player with Stewart’s ability from your defensive front, somebody else has to create disruption.
And disruption doesn’t always have to come screaming off the edge.
Sometimes the quickest way to destroy an offense is straight up the middle.
That’s why I’ll be watching Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy.
I want to see penetration.
I want to see him resetting the line of scrimmage.
I want to see Kent State’s quarterback feeling pressure coming directly into his face and running backs having to change direction before they ever get started.
If Brownlow-Dindy can become that kind of presence inside, think about what happens when Dylan Stewart comes back.
Now you’ve got problems coming from everywhere.
That’s when a defensive front becomes dangerous.
What I’m Really Watching
Here’s the bottom line.
Kent State isn’t really about finding out whether South Carolina can beat Kent State.
They should.
It’s about finding out what South Carolina has before the schedule starts getting serious.
Because eventually the guys on the other sideline are going to be just as big, just as fast and just as talented.
That’s when you find out who you really are.
So yes, I’m watching LaNorris Sellers.
Everybody is.
But I’m also watching DJ Black, Judge Collier and Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy.
Because we already know Sellers is going to have to be one of the best players on this football team if South Carolina is going to have the kind of season Gamecock fans are hoping for.
The bigger question is how many guys around him are ready to take that next step.
Saturday, we start finding out.
— JB
