The Feed Pail: A’ja the All-Star, and the return of WATCH LIST SZN

Welcome back to the feed pail, where we take a look around the internet for some choice South Carolina Gamecocks tidbits and share them back here with you. On the menu this afternoon: Let’s get hype about preseason award watch lists, A’ja Wilson STILL having a great WNBA season, and some other odds and ends.

A’ja Wilson is a WNBA All-Star

Wilson’s incredible rookie campaign continued with a selection to the WNBA All-Star team, made more impressive by the fact she’s the only rookie on the roster. She’s the second Gamecock to earn the honor since Shannon Johnson, a four-time All-Star. The game is set for Saturday, July 28, at 3:30 p.m.

As a fun aside, Los Angeles Laker and Summer League MVP Josh Hart donned an A’ja jersey before a game earlier this week after tweeting about how he needed one (and the Aces were happy to comply). The hype train certainly seems to be rolling.

Batch of Gamecocks land on preseason award watch lists

Because South Carolina was fortunate enough to have a handful of nominees, here’s the rundown:

• Running back Rico Dowdle — Doak Walker Award, given to the country’s best running back
• Quarterback Jake Bentley — Davey O’Brien Award, given to the country’s best quarterback, and the Maxwell Award, a national player of the year honor
• Receiver/kick returner Deebo Samuel — Maxwell Award
• Defensive lineman D.J. Wonnum — Chuck Bednarik Trophy, handed out to the country’s defensive player of the year

Good stuff, and it’s nice to see more under-the-radar guys like Dowdle and Wonnum getting a little love from these voting groups.

Why one SEC Network host thinks South Carolina will beat Georgia this year — Josh Kendall, The State

Let’s talk more about the Georgia game! Former Gamecock Tori Gurley now has company, as SEC Network analyst Peter Burns is going with South Carolina in the annual SEC East showdown. Burns called betting guru Danny Sheridan’s two-touchdown spread laughable, and explained more about why he thinks the Gamecocks can grab this one:

I don’t think Will has the defense he wants yet, but I think Will over the last two years has shown he knows where his deficiencies are, and he can mask those really well. To think that a Georgia team that may be more talented overall as a roster can come in there and whup South Carolina, I am not buying any of that.

From his lips to God’s ears.

Matt Luke turned down South Carolina before becoming head coach at Ole Miss — David Cloninger, Post and Courier

I’m not sure how much of this was common knowledge, but former offensive line coach Matt Luke was interviewed to take the same position with the Gamecocks when Shawn Elliott left to coach Georgia State. He instead stuck with the Rebels and assumed head coaching duties after scandal chased Hugh Freeze out the door, but it’s always interesting to get a peek behind the curtain.