This has been the most bizarre game week in recent Florida football history. Between Dan Mullen’s decision to not allow defensive coordinator Todd Grantham or his players to speak with the media this week, his heavily criticized remark about recruiting, his terse Monday press conference that only lasted 12 minutes and the slew of critical articles that have been written by national media, very little has actually been said about the Gators’ game at South Carolina this week.
But this is a big game for the program’s trajectory under Mullen. The Gamecocks (4-4, 1-4 SEC) struggled to beat East Carolina, Troy and Vanderbilt. Even though it’s a night game on the road, this is a game that the Gators (4-4, 2-4) should win without much trouble.
But, given the way that they’ve underachieved this season and the strangeness of this week, this win isn’t a given.
South Carolina may not have the talent that Florida does, but they’re playing hard for first-year head coach Shane Beamer, the son of longtime Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer.
“I’ve known Coach Beamer a long time,” Mullen said. “I think, obviously, he’s an excellent football coach, comes from a great pedigree of coaching, and you see that. You see that in kind of the mindset in how this team has improved. You see it in little areas of how they buy-in. They make some big plays at key moments of the game. Defense creates a lot of turnovers. They’ve blocked three kicks on the year.
“Obviously, I think they’ve had to deal with some injuries, similar to a lot of teams throughout the year, offensively. But you watch them do a lot of the little things and the competitive things that show the improvement that this team has made since he’s arrived.”
If the Gators win this game, the noise surrounding the program will calm down at least a little bit for the foreseeable future. If they lose, well, next week might be even more insufferable for both them and their fans.
Here is a breakdown of what the Gamecocks will bring to the table on both sides of the ball, starting with their offense.
Gamecocks Offense
Beamer hasn’t gotten this offense rolling yet. They still resemble Will Muschamp’s last couple of teams, with inconsistent quarterback play, a bad offensive line and a lack of depth at the skill positions.
They rank 13th in the SEC in total offense (327.9 yards per game), 13th in scoring (20.9 points per game), 12th in rushing (117.2 yards per game) and 11th in passing (210.6 yards per game). They’ve surrendered 19 sacks, which is tied for the fourth most in the league.
There are really only four players that Gators fans should be worried about. Running back ZaQuandre White leads them in rushing with 291 yards and a score on 42 carries (6.9 yards per carry). Kevin Harris is more of a power runner and has amassed 253 yards and two touchdowns on 70 carries. He’s only averaging 3.6 yards per carry, a testament to the bad offensive line that he’s running behind.
In the passing game, keep an eye out for wide receiver Josh Vann and tight end Jaheim Bell. Vann leads them with 431 yards and two touchdowns on 24 receptions. He’s averaging 18 yards per catch, which means that he’s a deep-ball threat that will challenge UF’s young defensive backs such as Avery Helm and Jason Marshall.
Bell, a former Florida commit, could present some matchup issues for UF’s linebackers, as they don’t typically excel in coverage. He’s caught 17 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns.
Harris and White also serve as receiving threats, as they’ve combined for 20 catches and a touchdown.
South Carolina has gone back and forth between two quarterbacks this season. Luke Doty, who ended the 2020 season as the starter, entered fall camp as the undisputed starter, but a foot injury kept him out of their first two games. In his place, Zeb Noland, who initially joined the program as a graduate assistant before coming out of retirement to provide depth, started the first two games and led them on a fourth-quarter rally to defeat East Carolina.
Doty replaced Noland after he got injured against Georgia in week three and then started the next four games. Doty reinjured his foot during the Vanderbilt game, and Noland led them to their only conference victory off of the bench. Doty elected to have season-ending surgery following the game, making Noland the starter for their last game against Texas A&M.
While a former graduate assistant leading a pair of come-from-behind victories in the fourth quarter makes for a good story, Noland’s play has left a lot to be desired this season. He’s only completed 58.2 percent of his throws for 512 yards with six touchdowns and one interception.
Beamer hasn’t named a starter between Noland and St. Francis (Pennsylvania) transfer Jason Brown, who has completed 12 of 20 passes for 129 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions this season. He’s also left open the possibility of playing multiple quarterbacks, which could also involve true freshman Colten Gauthier.
This is the type of offense that UF’s defense should dominate and hold to under 17 points. Of course, that depends on which version of their defense shows up in Columbia.
Gamecocks Defense
This is the better of the two sides of the ball, though that’s not saying much given how anemic their offense has been.
They rank eighth in the conference in total defense (346.4 yards per game), eighth in scoring (24.5 points per game), 11th in rushing defense (168.9 yards per game) and last in tackles-for-loss (2.9 per game).
However, there are two stats that should scare Gators fans. The Gamecocks are third in the league in passing defense at 177.5 yards per game, and they lead the SEC with 17 takeaways, including 11 interceptions.
The Gators have struggled with inconsistencies in the passing game this season and will likely be forced to play quarterback Emory Jones for the entire game with Anthony Richardson yet to practice this week while he’s in concussion protocol.
The two of them have combined to throw 14 interceptions, which has contributed to Florida ranking next-to-last in the conference in turnover margin (minus-7). The Gamecocks probably won’t be able to score enough to beat the Gators on offense, but they can certainly score enough points on defense to pull off the upset if Jones doesn’t take care of the ball.
Individually, free safety Jaylan Foster is the star of their defense. He leads the nation with five interceptions. He has an all-around skillset, as he leads the team with 65 tackles, is tied for the team lead with two forced fumbles and is tied for fourth on the team with two sacks. He’s probably going to have to be the MVP of this game for South Carolina to win.
Defensive ends Kingsley Enagbare (4.5 sacks, two passes defended, one forced fumble) and Aaron Sterling (2.5 sacks), defensive tackle Zacch Pickens (3.5 sacks, one pass defended) and linebacker Damani Staley (40 tackles, two interceptions, one touchdown) are other players to watch.
If the Gators can get their running game going like they did earlier this season and take care of the football, they should be able to score 35-40 points against this defense without much trouble. If they can’t run the ball or turn it over several times, things could get interesting.