Gamecocks ascend under Muschamp

ATLANTA -- South Carolina is on an impressive mini-streak under Coach Will Muschamp.

For the first time in school history, the Gamecocks have made back-to-back three-game improvements in the win column.

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After legendary Coach Steve Spurrier's final team turned in a disastrous 3-9 season in 2015, Muschamp led a surge to 6-7 the next year, then 9-4 and second place in the SEC East in 2017.

Another jump of equal magnitude this year would produce one of the greatest seasons for South Carolina and likely land the school in its second SEC Championship Game, following a 56-17 loss to Auburn in 2010.

Standing in the way of the Gamecocks' ascension is defending SEC champion Georgia, which broke the eight-year streak of SEC championships from the Western Division. Muschamp said don't discount Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee and Vanderbilt, either.

"The competitive edge in the East is very good," Muschamp said. "Top to bottom on our side, there's a lot of competitive teams."

Muschamp must solve his offensive issues before his team can contend for any kind of title.

The former defensive back at Georgia, and a prized pupil of Alabama Coach Nick Saban, has posted strong defensive numbers as a coordinator and a head coach wherever he's been, but his offensive problems have been an albatross.

Grievances from the fans during his four-year run as head coach at Florida stemmed from poor offensive numbers.

While the Gamecocks were ranked No. 25 in scoring defense and No. 13 in turnover margin in 2017, they were No. 108 in total offense ( 337 yards per game) and No. 99 in scoring (24.2 points per game).

To spice up that side of the ball, Muschamp juggled his offensive staff. He fired coordinator Kurt Roper after the regular season and gave receivers coach Bryan McClendon an audition in the Outback Bowl, which resulted in a 26-19 victory over Michigan and his full-time appointment as coordinator.

Running backs coach Bobby Bentley, the father of starting quarterback Jake Bentley, got to coach his son's position in the bowl game, but he has returned to his former spot. Dan Werner, a veteran who has worked at Auburn, Ole Miss and Miami, will handle the quarterbacks.

Muschamp is fully engaged in establishing a "tempo" offense to play into the wheelhouse of Bentley, a junior who is entering a third season as a starter.

"We want to be able to dictate the tempo of the game more, play faster," Muschamp said. "I think Jake plays better when he plays faster, and ... you'll see a noticeable change in our offense as far as the tempo is concerned."

Bentley led a South Carolina unit that ranked No. 70 in passing efficiency and No. 77 with 214.9 yards per game in 2017. He's an advocate of the offensive tempo tweak.

"I think it's one of the best things that has happened to me as far as my college career," he said. "I think it allowed me to slow down my mind. It's been different for us. There have been some bumps in the road when we're going over it, but I think it's going to be real good for us."

Bentley will work with receivers who rank among the best in the conference, sparked by the return of standout Deebo Samuel.

The senior scored six touchdowns in the first three games, including 99-yard kickoff return touchdowns against North Carolina State and Missouri, before a broken ankle knocked him out for the rest of the season.

Muschamp said at SEC football media days last week that Samuel was the most explosive player in the country for the first 11 quarters last season.

"When you've got a guy like that who you know can make a game change with one play not be out there, I think it took a toll on us a little bit," Bentley said. "But when he got back out there, you can just see the guys' confidence in him and what he is able to do. Not only is he a great player, he is a great teammate as well."

Samuel, who had missed games with hamstring problems before, worked hard on the rehabilitation of his ankle.

"The thing that was motivating me was the love that I have for the game," Samuel said. "I wasn't going to give up on my dream."

Bryan Edwards became a go-to target for Bentley after Samuel' injury, and the 6-3, 216-pounder had 41 catches for 793 yards and 5 touchdowns.

South Carolina's running game is in need of a premier back after A.J. Turner (98 carries, 531 yards), Ty'Son Williams (95-471) and Rico Dowdle (66-251) split time last year.

The Gamecocks lost five defensive starters but return productive talent in players such as defensive end D.J. Wonnum, who has 7.5 sacks and 16.5 tackles for loss in two seasons; linebacker T.J. Brunson; defensive lineman Javon Kinlaw; and linebacker Bryson Allen-Williams, who is returning from a shoulder injury that sidelined him last year.

"Our defensive line is fast and physical," Wonnum said. "That is us. We are fundamental in our standards, so we're going to do some great things this year."

The Gamecocks hope to put forth more consistent showings after an up-and-down 2017.

South Carolina lost at home to Kentucky 23-13 the day Samuel suffered his injury, then squeaked out a 17-16 victory over Louisiana Tech the next week. The Gamecocks rebounded from a 24-17 loss at Texas A&M with a 48-22 throttling of the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and also won at Tennessee and beat Florida and Vanderbilt in the second half of the year.

The Gamecocks host Georgia on Sept. 8 at Williams-Brice Stadium.

"It will be hot, I can assure you of that," Muschamp said. "We need to have a great training camp to focus in on that, to focus on winning every day, to improve.

"Certainly we know that game is looming, but the winner or loser of that game is not going to determine the East. There's a lot of football to be played after that game, regardless of the circumstances and the outcome of that game."

Sports on 07/24/2018