Orth, Mitch tied for back-up role

It's a two-man race for back-up quarterback at South Carolina this year.  But not necessarily the two men you expected going into the spring.

"Connor Mitch did a lot better than he's done today, and Perry Orth [too].  Brendan [Nosovitch] struggles throwing the ball some, but he's an excellent runner," head coach Steve Spurrier said after Thursday's practice.  "Perry Orth and Connor Mitch are co-number 2s right now."

Spurrier said Mitch looked good on Thursday.  "He got the ball out of his hands and didn't hold it too long and he threw the ball, and hit some guys here and there.  So maybe he's coming around.  But he's been here a year though, so he should be coming around."

As for Orth, Spurrier said "he throws a good ball.  He throws a spiral.  A lot of times there's not a lot of spirals been going around out here."

As for the guys that are catching those passes, Spurrier singled out Shamir Jeffrey and Pharoh Cooper as two players who excelled at practice on Thursday.

Spurrier also reiterated his support to give college football and basketball players "a stipend and expense money and so forth" in response to the National Labor Relations Board's ruling that Northwestern football players can form a union.  He indicated his hope that schools that "can afford to give a stipend of $4000-5000" would do so to help compensate players for their time and allow their parents to attend games more easily.

The Gamecocks scrimmage on Saturday.