South Carolina at Mississippi St. Preview: Three Keys, What It Means, Prediction

by Gamecock Man on Oct 14, 2011 11:30 PM EDT in South Carolina Gamecocks Football

This post concludes our Miss. St. preview.

Three Keys to Victory

3. Stop the Run

Miss. St. has struggled to pass the ball all season, although they do appear to do so somewhat better when Tyler Russell is in. Therefore, we should take away the run. I like our chances to slow State down with run-focused defensive schemes, and when State does pass, I think our front four should be able to get more than enough pressure to disrupt their passing game.

2. Offensive Line Must Improve

I know we're playing some young guys in Cody Gibson and Mike Matulis, but at some point these guys need to step up. One of State's defensive strengths is the interior of its defensive front, so these guys as well as the rest of the big uglies need to play better in this game. They not only need to knock some Bulldogs backwards; they also need to avoid committing motion penalties, which is always a challenge when the cowbells start ringing in Davis-Wade.

1. Shaw Needs to Continue to Play Well

As important as the offensive line is to the offense playing well, I think, in this game at least, that all offensive problems will take care of themselves if Shaw has another good game. It's up to Shaw to soften up the defensive interior, which will allow Marcus Lattimore room to run. Shaw doesn't have to play great. He doesn't even have to be as good as he was last week. What he does need to do is hit the routine passes. He also needs to protect the ball. I think our defense can hold Miss. St. to a low score, but only if Shaw doesn't give State good field position.

Continue reading after the jump.

What It Means

This is a really key game. The Gamecocks can't lose this game if they want to keep a leg up in the SEC East standings.

Prediction

I'm not expecting the kind of offensive explosion we got from Shaw last week. What I do expect, though, is for Shaw to play an efficient game and to open up room for Lattimore as the game wears on. That should be enough to win, as the defense will do the rest. 24-13 Gamecocks.

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Comments

A win is a win..

by 1 point or 21 points. Defense and special teams will win this game and would not be surprised if hbc pulls out a trick play. Imagine he will keep Shaw on a short leash and try to keep him upright with no backups. The oline is a major worry. Hope 22 gets some touches in this game to spell Lattimore and beat on msu.
Go Cocks!

by wilmywoodcock on Oct 15, 2011 7:37 AM EDT reply actions

Yes, a win is definitely a win in this game. I would love to see us show out today and win big, but the key is getting out of there with a win.

Miss. St. seems down this year, but I think they’ll come out fired up in this one. They’ve been playing patsies the last few wees, and they know that this game gives them a chance to get their season back on track.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 10:06 AM EDT up reply actions

Some thoughts on your Three Keys

1. Shaw: hit the routine passes … protect the ball

What I like best about Shaw is that he seems both smart enough and team-oriented enough to accept his role – to play within himself (to use that tired but true cliche). People say this QB or that is just a “manager” like its a bad thing. Heck – learning how to manage is the just one of the steps on the road to greatness, not an alternative to greatness (doesn’t Peyton Manning manage the game? doesn’t Tom Brady?). Management was something that eluded Stephen Garcia – and made him shaky despite his obvious athletic talent, moxy and on-the-field leadership skills.

2. OL: these guys need to step up

I have complete faith in Shawn Elliot, but great OL’s don’t grow overnight. It takes years of patient recruiting and development; even top JUCO lineman are often hit-or-miss in big time CFB. We’re still in a hangover from the John Reaves era – and Nunn’s loss was critical, so we shouldn’t expect a big turn-around overnight. However, I’ve observed that OL who trust their QB tend to play better than those who don’t. I’m sure the lineman loved Stephen as a friend – but they weren’t able to trust him this year. If Shaw plays well, look for the OL to step it up a notch – just my hunch.

3. DL: front four should be able to get more than enough pressure

Absolutely. From the Jackson Clarion-Ledger we learn that Messrs. Ingram and Clowney have attracted the Bulldogs’ attention, so they say that they “have to dominate the [USC] inside guys to do our part.”

Good luck with that, fellas. Prepare to get on a first name basis with Kelsey Quarles and Travian Robertson.

Here's a health, Carolina, forever to thee! UNIVERSITAS CAROLIN MERID. 1801 Emollit mores nec sinit esse feros (Ovid)

by tryptic67 on Oct 15, 2011 9:09 AM EDT reply actions

Agreed on all points.

Particularly about the o-line. I don’t think we’re going to see a startling turnaround unless Nunn comes back, but I do think these guys can pull it together and play well if they become more confident in Shaw. People oftentimes like to blame the OL for the skills position players’ struggles, but in this case, I think it works both ways. I’m hoping that after last week, the offensive line will come out with more confidence and purpose.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 10:09 AM EDT up reply actions

so they say that they "have to dominate the [USC] inside guys to do our part." Good luck with that, fellas. Prepare to get on a first name basis with Kelsey Quarles and Travian Robertson.

That made me chuckle….so true.

Braves.
Falcons.
Gamecocks.

by walknbalk on Oct 15, 2011 11:11 AM EDT up reply actions

I think we should throw to that All-American guy more often.

So far this year he has been getting 2 less catches a game

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by RjTheMetalhead on Oct 15, 2011 10:30 AM EDT reply actions

That should change now that Garcia is done.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 10:48 AM EDT up reply actions

And the funny thing is, we probably will not throw to him more often. But the throws we do make will be completed more often.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 10:49 AM EDT up reply actions

Yay for a so far competent QB!

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by RjTheMetalhead on Oct 15, 2011 10:50 AM EDT up reply actions

Maybe I shouldn't get too far ahead of myself.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 10:53 AM EDT up reply actions

It was Kentucky.

But last week he had his season high in catches, yards, and TD’s.

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by RjTheMetalhead on Oct 15, 2011 10:57 AM EDT up reply actions

A lot of commentators picking this game for an upset.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 11:04 AM EDT reply actions

Might have to do with Spurrier's history there.

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by RjTheMetalhead on Oct 15, 2011 11:12 AM EDT up reply actions

I think the issue is Florida's history, not Spurrier's.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 11:13 AM EDT up reply actions

To be fair.

Most Gators fans think Spurrier invented football.

Oh look my tumblr, where you can find all my photoshops and other crap
Lay off my crappy english, this means you Chloe.

by RjTheMetalhead on Oct 15, 2011 11:20 AM EDT up reply actions

Who's ready for some football?!

Couple thoughts…first I agree with most things written here.

But, I don’t think Shaw will be on a short leash. How is that possible? There is really nobody else who can play QB right now at this level. Unless you mean if Shaw is not immediately successful, we will abandon the pass and just make various running games.

I don’t think for a moment that this will be an upset. Miss St. is a tough team, and commentators hate the Gamecocks, but I just feel like we’re going to overwhelm them. Just a hunch.

Lastly, I have a conceptual issue with someone “playing within himself”. It’s all about execution and making good decisions. We actually want Shaw to continue stepping up and improving upon himself. I have faith that he can do this. In one game, he made me a believer that over the long run, he’s going to be very good for us.

Go Gamecocks!

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by walknbalk on Oct 15, 2011 11:08 AM EDT reply actions

I think what tryptic means about Shaw is that he won't be allowed to run too much.

Other than, I think you’re spot on. When I said Shaw needs to play within himself, I don’t mean that I don’t want him to try to make big plays. I just mean that I don’t want him to force the issue. If the big play is there, take it. If not, get some yards and keep playing. We don’t need to score 40 points to win this game, so there’s no need to force it.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 11:15 AM EDT up reply actions

RJ, do you know why the Big East isn't interesting in ECU?

I’m not really following this stuff closely, but I would have thought ECU would be a better get than Air Force.

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by Gamecock Man on Oct 15, 2011 11:12 AM EDT reply actions

The Big East is the worst run conference in CFB.

Also we lost interest becasue the C-USA and the MWC are joining to create a 20+ plus team megaconference abomination.

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by RjTheMetalhead on Oct 15, 2011 11:15 AM EDT up reply actions

Here is the quote.

Representatives from the Mountain West Conference, and Conference USA have come to a unanimous agreement to merge the conferences into a 22 team league for football only. The conferences hope to receive an automatic bid to BCS bowls with the new merger. It is still uncertain what will happen with Boise St., Air Force, and UCF who were all rumored to be joining the Big East. More to come as the story develops.

Oh look my tumblr, where you can find all my photoshops and other crap
Lay off my crappy english, this means you Chloe.

by RjTheMetalhead on Oct 15, 2011 11:22 AM EDT up reply actions

20+ plus team megaconference abomination.

Gross. I live in Cincinnati and have been hearing a lot of the discussion here and there on the radio. Just the way they even talk about their football programs makes me very happy to be SEC.

On some level, I feel badly for the Cincinnati Bearcats (I did my graduate degrees there). While I’m not really a fan, it was nice to see them rise in quality and performance under Brian Kelly.

Braves.
Falcons.
Gamecocks.

by walknbalk on Oct 15, 2011 11:23 AM EDT up reply actions