A Very Early 2011 South Carolina Gamecocks Depth Chart Projection

QB: Either Garcia makes that senior leap in talent that happens with some players, or Shaw improves and becomes our guys. Shaw would give us a great zone read option game.

HB: Carson, or Wilds, or some other freshman pushes Miles for playing time. Every team really needs three quality backs, since it’s such an injury prone position.

FB: Someone needs to put on twenty pounds of muscle to at least get to DiMarco’s weight. Cunningham definitely deserves a look if none of our current fullbacks can cut it.

TE: Not sure what to think here. Without seeing them play everyone looks as good as the next on paper. Cunningham did well this season in limited time, so I guess it’s probably his to lose. That Alvin Dupree dude from Georgia looked interesting, but Carolina didn’t offer him anything.

WR: Tanner McEvoy, the white Tori Gurley!! Just playin’ … maybe they’ll change their minds, though, and use him as a wide receiver. I can dream.

T: I hope Brandon Shell will push for immediate playing time. Second year dude Corey Robinson also looks like a physical specimen at tackle. I’m also interested in seeing what Kaleb Broome has to offer.

G: I really hope Watkins doesn’t leave. We don’t have enough guys in his weight range.

C: Not much should change here.

DT: I’d prefer to keep Ingram in a reserve role as a pass rusher, and Dukes, or somebody, fill in for Ajiboye.

DE: I hope this becomes the strongest position on the team, as it looks on paper. They may have Devin Taylor, Jadeveon Clowney, Chaz Sutton, Jerell Adams, and that Leon Mackey recruit looks interesting too.

OLB: Shaq attack is back. I hope he stays healthy this time. I wonder how much of a shot they have at that Cedrick Cooper recruit. That dude has enough speed to even play spur.

MLB: Paulk did decent this season, but I hope they give Townsend a look here. I think Townsend played running back too, so that gives him a good perspective on the position.

CB: Please somebody new come in and be awesome!!

S: Please somebody new come in and be awesome!!

Spur: Not much should change here.

KR/PR: Byrd, hopefully. I’d love for Sherman to improve, though. The blocking also needs to improve.

PK/P/KOS: Plenty of guys to choose from. I hope one or two can play. It’s hard to win games without a place kicker especially.

Overall, it’s tough to say whether Carolina will be better or worse than this past season. They may reinforce an already strong defensive line, but I wonder whether or not the secondary will improve. Perhaps the guys we have will play smarter, or some freshman/freshmen will spark the unit. FB may be in disarray, and who knows what will happen at quarterback. It’s tough to have an elite team if you’re quarterback position is in question. I’m also questioning the receiver position. If Garcia is the man, and he plays like this season, there cannot be hardly any dropped balls, ‘cause Garcia will miss a good share of throws as it is. Even if they get all the big name recruits left that they’re targeting — without watching the new guys play, and assuming no one regresses a lot or takes a huge leap in talent — I’d have to say it’s about the same team we had this season.

LB Qua Gilchrist. He will compete for playing time at LB. We may not be as bad as I thought at LB if Townshend commits.

Having seen him in person again yesterday, I will say Clowney will be your best defensive player from day one.

-I would love to see Byrd at KR/PR. He has some very impressive high school tape in that respect and I think he could be our Jacoby Ford. We need someone to spark our special teams and he’s got a great shot at being the player to do it.

-As far as WRs go, don’t forget about Nick Jones, who redshirted this year. The staff is very high on him and I’ve heard his style of play compared to Kenny McKinley. I think he’ll be one to look out for in spring/fall practice.

-For kicking duties, I think Wooten and Scribner-Howard will handle kickoffs/FGs, and Patrick Fish will punt. If I remember correctly, Fish was a guy we picked up in 2009, so if he’s good enough to have a scholarship, I would assume he’d step in for Lanning in that area.

-At RB, I think Miles made a great case this weekend to be the #2 back next year, but Shon Carson (provided he goes to college and not the MLB) should compete for that spot as well and provide quality depth.

I also think Shaw could seriously challenge Garcia at this point for the starting job. Garcia has shown a lot of progress over the years, but it has been a kind of slow and laborious process. By no means am I throwing him under the bus, but I think we’ll have another QB controversy on our hands come spring.

I could have sworn he was a senior, but maybe he’s a junior.