Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] On this episode of Cox Talking Gamecocks, fall camp begins for football, and I share storylines to keep in mind for that. Okay, here we go.
[00:00:53] Okay.
[00:00:55] Welcome to episode 398 of Cox Talking Gamecocks. I am your host today, Tim Cox, where I will keep every episode from 1801 to 2001. And guess what, y'? All, we are under a month until football. I can't believe I'm saying it. We have everything in front of us right now. Fall camp is starting. It's just incredible. Like, we got NFL preseason this month, we got week zero this month. But in under 30 days, you have Gamecock football on your TV or you're there watching it. It's unbelievable. I mean, what a long, hot summer it was between a nothing burger of a baseball season and then just trying to slog our way through the memories of a four and eight year. And you know what? It's a clean slate now. Everyone is 0 and 0. I think we're set for an improvement. And I'm just so, so stoked and just like I've been slowly but surely just dialing it in and dialing it in. And you, you know, you're reading the articles and you're studying the depth chart and you're studying the schedule. Like, I'm sure I've said this already, but like, I'm, I'm in the point where I'm looking at our schedule and then I'm looking at the opponent's schedule. So I'll be like, okay, like, who. Who does Tennessee play the week or two even before us? Like, are we going to catch somebody off a tough physical back to backs, things like that.
[00:02:29] I just needed to be here. I'm so, so excited. And you know, we are gonna come up on the game previews and everything like that before we know it. And it's just fantastic. So I gotta have this episode and then I believe it's one more, and then I'll finally get to my season preview, which I always do as a two parter. So we're. You can kind of map out what's coming up here on the show. And then if everything goes according to plan, it'll be back to the twice a week cadence of the Friday show, previewing the weekend and the opponent and things like that. And then Monday show reaction, everything like that. Now I'm moving houses and things like that. That's none of your concern.
[00:03:12] But that's happening the first weekend of the season. Of course. But nonetheless, let's jump into this here. I Have my handy dandy gamecock trivia to kick us off, of course. And here we go.
[00:03:24] In what year did the South Carolina women's basketball team reach the Final Four for the first time in program history?
[00:03:33] I feel like. Like, that. That happened right around the time when I was, like, a senior.
[00:03:38] So I'm going to go with 2015. And, yeah, it's 2015. All right. Shout out to Dawn Staley. Shout out to the women's basketball team.
[00:03:46] Yeah. Man, what a run. That's like, a decade and then some, really, of just being at the top of the sport. It's really cool when you think of it like that, you know, I mean, it was a buildup, of course, and so there's still some exciting games and moments leading up to that.
[00:04:01] And then here we are now, still. Still right at the top of the list. Really, really cool. Shout out to the women's basketball team. But, yeah, the rest of the episode here, really focusing on football here. I said it two seconds ago. But fall camp begins Friday.
[00:04:16] So those practices that are, you know, in the August heat, where you are really ready for the season now, and it's full steam ahead, like, you got summer workouts, you got spring workouts. Those are all designed to do different things. Fall camp is designed, like, you're already in shape, but let's do everything we can to really grind and put things together here. And then at a certain point, that camp shifts to game prep for the first game, and then you are off to the races here. So really, really exciting time. Beamer had a media day. I don't know why it was called media day. Like, it was a press conference like any other one. But nonetheless, he highlighted that over the summer, the team had a really strong performance. And, yes, I'm sure every coach in America is going to say that, but he kind of alluded to that. They instituted some things. They tweaked some of the workouts that they did over the summer. And he said that it gave them a better grasp on, really, Like, I think he was trying to say, like, the mental makeup of this team, and he didn't get into specifics, but he said that they tweaked some of the workouts. So instead of it being, like, with a very defined start and stop, they would just kind of say, go and do this. And they would see, like, who would continue to push when it was hard. Like, instead of saying, like, hey, you're gonna run five sprints when you run that fifth one, like, yeah, you could run through the line, but like, you could probably see some guys, like, ease up and things like that. I think it was more like, hey, we're gonna run some sprints here. You know, it's gonna go no longer than this, but, like, you know, you don't really know when it's gonna end. Let's see what you got. And I think it's trying to create that fourth quarter mentality throughout camp. Just continue to dig and push from the very first rep through the very last. And I'm here for it. I mean, whatever you did last offseason, frankly, you need to change some things.
[00:06:16] And so I'm glad to hear that. And it just seems like it was more challenging both mentally and physically over the summer. But just he gave a lot of shout outs to the nutrition staff and the training staff and just doing everything the right way and getting the team ready for this. He also continued to emphasize, like, how this is a older and more experienced team than last year. He said something that I actually didn't really put together. I'm sure at some point. I know I knew this, but there were four seniors who started on last year's team, four who started.
[00:06:50] And without getting into the depth chart, you can estimate it's double or even triple that this year. So it's just a smarter, older, more experienced team. And I said that's a reason to be excited for this year. Beamer has said it. It's not rocket science, but I think that's something that when you look at teams that have succeeded, especially in the Portal era, like, that's a common denominator and something that I think really hurt South Carolina in a lot of times last season. So really cool, really exciting time to just see the reports and to really get tangible evidence that football is here. And that really leads me to the rest of the episode here, to this segment of just storylines that are top of mind for me during camp. You're never going to get anything too concrete usually, but you get tidbits, you get the press conferences, you get the insider reports, you get some articles and things like that so you can piece together what's going on in these camps if you pay enough attention. But regardless, there are some things that I have top of mind for me that I am concerned about, for lack of a better term, that I want to be cleared up as we go into this camp. And so by the end of August, I'd like to know that we have some concrete answers here. So in no particular order, number one, the health and progression of Peak and Stewart Beamer said today there's no real update on that, but they continue to progress. Well, they've had good updates from the doctors and the trainers. They're not going to be practicing. Sounds like they'll just, you know, be around, you know, rehabbing, mental reps, all that jazz. But I'm kind of in the. Like, I'm torn. Like, it's like, is no news actually good news? Like, it is possible that they are just progressing. They're rehabbing, they're doing the things that you have to do to come back from injuries, and there's not much to say about that. Like, if you break your arm, there's not much you can say.
[00:09:03] From week two of breaking your arm to week four, you just say, like, I'm closer to when I'm supposed to be healthy. There's not much of an update there.
[00:09:12] But on the other side, like, there's a little bit of me that's like, is no news bad?
[00:09:18] You know what I mean? Like, like, you know, is it that they just don't want to say that things are not going so well? Like, if there is something that's of concern, is Beamer really going to just say that now in the first week of August? So. So he's going to get asked about it a lot.
[00:09:38] But this is something that all of us are going to have our eyes and ears open to, because these are two really good players at two premium positions, and if you want to win, you need them healthy. You know, I said in a previous episode, I wouldn't be surprised if they don't play the first game, even as a precaution.
[00:10:00] But game two, I want to see these guys out here because game three is sec play and you got to be ready to go next. I. I'm very curious about what this kicking competition looks like. I mean, we've been through this exact scenario very recently, right, where there just was not a clear cut kicker.
[00:10:22] And it ended up being like, well, this guy could handle these duties, this guy cannot. And it was just very inconsistent.
[00:10:29] So I would love to be in a place where come the end of August.
[00:10:35] It's a confident and steadfast answer from Beamer, as this is our kicker. This guy won the competition. We're rolling with him because none of them, unfortunately have a ton of experience at the power four level.
[00:10:50] You know, you got. You got some varying degrees of experience, but you can't point to one of them and be like, yeah, this guy is for sure clutch.
[00:11:00] Because while I do think this team is going to be Better.
[00:11:03] I don't think this team is going to be blowing a lot of people away.
[00:11:06] And there were some games last year even that were close.
[00:11:11] Right.
[00:11:12] And year before that, of course, there were some that are close. So you're going to need to be able to hit your kicks and clutch moments. So hopefully someone emerges as a steady and reliable kicker.
[00:11:24] And then I want to know, whose name do we hear about in the Edge group other than Herring or Stewart?
[00:11:33] Those are your two guys, in my opinion. Right. You bring in Caleb Herring from Tennessee big time, get from the Portal, presumably to come in and play opposite of Stewart, a guy who was highly recruited at Tennessee, maybe didn't perform to that billing, but was productive, really gives me the Kyle Kennard vibes. Like, has the build, has the tangibles, has had his moments in college where you're like, yeah, that. That dude can play, but just has not put it together consistently.
[00:12:07] So I think bringing in coach Barnes with a great reputation, I think it's going to be just the perfect change of scenery for Caleb Herring. So I'm penciling him in as your starter opposite of Dylan Stewart. Then, of course, you have Dylan Stewart, which ties back to point number one. But let's assume he's healthy here.
[00:12:27] Who else do we see emerge? Like, whose name in this camp gets talked about? A guy who we're not really talking about is George Wilson.
[00:12:38] If you remember correctly, he came in, I believe, from Campbell last season, and his name was being brought up as someone that could surprise some people. You know, long guy, you know, just pure pass rusher, but got hurt. So my question, I haven't really heard of anything to the contrary, but is he fully healthy and ready to rock or is he still ramping, ramping up, getting ready for full contact? Is that someone that ends up playing a big role this season? Because I remember last year when he got hurt, we said, oh, well, he'll be around. And it was a pretty exciting pickup at the time. But aside from that, like, does Julian Walker develop quickly? He's a true freshman, Very, very talented, I give you. But how quickly does he develop? Anthony Addison is another guy who has quietly been mentioned as well over the last season or so. Right. So I want to know as we progress through this camp, what does that group look like?
[00:13:41] I said it on another episode, like, there's talent in that group. It just might be a little thin.
[00:13:46] So if you can get a guy like George Wilson or Anthony Addison to be consistent, I mean, a guy like George Wilson, you know, from what I remember hearing, like, he was like a, you know, solid pass rusher. Can he play the run?
[00:14:01] Can you get that from Anthony Addison?
[00:14:03] So it's all very interesting. And then on the opposite side of that, I want to know how quickly does the starting group of offensive linemen come together and specifically who do we see in that interior group? Because if you have peak healthy, he's your left tackle. That's what you brought him here to do.
[00:14:23] On the opposite side of tackle, I believe the general consensus is that it's Shedsarette, good young player.
[00:14:31] So in the middle, it's. It's a hodgepodge, right, of you. You brought in several transfers.
[00:14:37] You know, you got some guys who stayed, you know, like, who emerges there. And I, I really want to know, like, the center. I think Carter Miller would be the guy, but I don't know, like, am I wrong there?
[00:14:49] Poku from ECU was a big transfer portal pickup. Like, does he solidify himself as one of the guards?
[00:14:56] You know, do we have another instance of its musical chairs where, hey, this guy, you know, he really is our tackle, but we're going to train him a lot at guard and do that. I don't know if that's how coach Clements rocks, so we'll see. And again, like, I think that's one of the beauties of having Briles and Clem knowing each other. And I think. I think coach Clem has a pretty good grasp on this group. I really do. Like, when you hear him talk about it, I just think this is a guy that's been around the block.
[00:15:28] He knows how to put it together. He knows what he's looking for. I think he's really good at instilling that attitude that you need to be an offensive lineman.
[00:15:36] And we'll see how it goes. But again, like, do we see reports of, like, yep, it was pretty clear we have our group now and they're gelling. Whereas in the past we've had a lot of the.
[00:15:49] We're cross training guys, we're still figuring out our top five, which, like, you're going to hear a lot of just because you don't want to give a lot away. But I also think that, that some of that was, like, fully legitimate. And when you look at some of the coaching behind it, I think you just. These guys weren't able to put it together.
[00:16:06] And then I want to know, is there any intel, do we get any intel on who will start at safety? Opposite of Peyton Williams. Peyton Williams went to SEC media days. He has done a really good Job for us at safety. This job as the starting safety is his, but there's another one.
[00:16:25] Who is that going to be?
[00:16:27] David Busey is probably the safe bet here. He's an older guy. I think he probably goes into camp here as the guy to beat, if you will.
[00:16:39] And no disrespect to Busey, but I think there might be some younger guys on this team that their ceiling is just higher than his right, and he can fend them off with smart play, consistent availability, and doing things the right way.
[00:16:55] He's an experienced guy who knows exactly what Clayton White wants, and that will go a long way.
[00:17:02] But do some of these guys, like currants, young guy, find themselves a way to get a lot of reps here? Do we see someone else come into the picture? Like, there is a plethora of guys in the defensive backfield. I think you have an idea of, like, who's out for corner, like, who's going to be there going for nickel? Is it possible that some of these guys get bopped around? You know, I think of a guy like Jaluis Solomon, I think he's going to be vying for, you know, one of the corner positions. Does. Does he possibly fit that mole? That could be a weird take, right?
[00:17:39] You know, or Kilgore. Like, I know. I know he's fighting for the. For the nickel spot. He's more of a bigger guy. But is there a world where someone who is vying for one of these corner spots tries their hand at safety and it actually kind of works?
[00:17:54] So that's going to be very interesting because the whole defensive backfield is talented and it's pretty deep, but there's not really many clear cuts. Like, yeah, you are that position. You are that position.
[00:18:09] So it's going to be very interesting to see how that shakes out. But. But safety, to me, is one of the more interesting ones, and I think it probably ends up being Busey. But don't be surprised if someone emerges from camp and is starting behind him and maybe even beats him as the year goes on. So nonetheless, fall camp is here. Football is right around the corner.
[00:18:32] There's so many different storylines that you could think about. I mean, really, like, these are just ones that were top of mind for me, but all the intel we get from camp is going to be a lot of fun. But with that, y', all, that wraps up this episode. Please follow me on social media. Twitter or X is Cox Gamecocks. Instagram is just the name of the show. Cox talking Gamecocks. And please like subscribe and review the podcast. I appreciate all y' all go cocks.
