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Will Muschamp began his N.C. State postgame press conference on Saturday with probably an understatement of a quote.
"It was a good day for South Carolina" - Will Muschamp after #Gamecocks 35-28 win over NC State pic.twitter.com/Eni2dXajTN
— Daren Stoltzfus (@DarenStoltzfus) September 2, 2017
A good day indeed.
Some highlights from Muschamp’s comments:
—Jake Bentley did well under pressure, Muschamp said, with two of the scores coming in pressure situations. The most notable one was the one-handed catch by Deebo Samuel that saw Bentley flushed out and needing to evade the defensive pursuit by the Wolfpack defense. To me that was one of the key things I saw with Bentley tonight; although he did absorb a couple of sacks due to making reads too long, he did very well in those situations.
—D.J. Smith got a shoutout for his performance today. Smith had the key breakup on 4th and goal that sealed the victory for South Carolina with just seconds remaining.
Muschamp on Smith: "DJ is a guy that I think has some ability...he's been probably as improved a player as I've seen at S. Carolina."
— WIS News 10 (@wis10) September 2, 2017
—Muschamp was also complimentary of his defensive line. Despite giving up 415 yards passing, the team only allowed 85 yards rushing. That’s the least amount of yards they’ve given up on the ground since September 26, 2015 against Central Florida. D.J. Wonnum was also heavily involved.
Muschamp on defensive line: "They fought their butts off."
— WIS News 10 (@wis10) September 2, 2017
Muschamp also mentioned the takeways and how key they were to the victory. South Carolina scored 14 points on a pair of Wolfpack fumbles (both forced by Dante Sawyer).
In his two seasons with the #Gamecocks in 2015 and 2016, Dante Sawyer forced zero fumbles. He's forced two today.
— Carson Mason (@CarsonAnnMason) September 2, 2017
—He also clarified the kicking situation afterwards and the plan after today. Parker White showed a big leg on kickoffs, and Muschamp hopes to leverage that on long FGs (as the ESPN broadcast predicted this afternoon).
Gamecocks will have two FG kickers going forward. Woznick inside the 30, Parker White outside the 30. Woznick stays on PATs.
— David Cloninger (@DCPandC) September 2, 2017
—A clip from the press conference (h/t @VashtiHurt). Muschamp mentioned recruiting and how important the Charlotte area was to them in that department. Two of South Carolina’s offensive linemen - true freshman Eric Douglas and redshirt freshman Will Putnam - are from the Charlotte area.
Muschamp proud of his team after win over NC State #BelkCollegeKickoff pic.twitter.com/31k4rhMapr
— Carolina Blitz (@VashtiHurt) September 2, 2017