One day after his Gamecocks lost to Georgia, 41-30, Steve Spurrier’s assessment of South Carolina was typically blunt.
""We’re not a very good team right now,” he said. “We’ve got to work hard to get our stuff together. We don’t need to worry about any kind of championships.”
The usually-stout Gamecocks defense was shredded by the balanced Bulldog attack. Georgia’s 536 total yards included 266 on the ground. It was the most yards allowed by a South Carolina defense since 2007. All-American defensive end Jadeveon Clowney was largely a non-factor, despite picking up his first sack of the season.
On the bright side, the Gamecocks offense showed some proficiency. Tailback Mike Davis looks to be an upgrade over the departed Marcus Lattimore as he rushed for 150 yards on 16 carries to notch his second-straight 100-yard game. The sophomore once again showed he had downtown speed as he tore off a 75-yard run in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Connor Shaw continued to improve, too, throwing for 228 yards and two scores on 16 of 25 passing. He also ran for 75 yards.
So to say South Carolina isn’t a good team is probably going a bit far. It’s just that the Gamecocks ran into a buzz saw on Saturday. After all, it’s not easy to contain the likes of Murray, Gurley and Co.
As usual, Spurrier seems to be flapping his jaws for one reason only: To motivate his team.