Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] On this episode of Cox Talking Gamecocks, the football team returns home to play Oklahoma. Men's basketball has their media day and some tough news from the women's basketball team. Okay, here we go.
[00:00:56] Okay.
[00:00:57] Welcome to episode 347 of Cox Talking Gamecocks. I am your host, Tim Cox and I will keep every episode from 1801 to 2001, y'. All. It has been, it has been one hell of a week for your boy here. Personal note, we adopted a dog. He's adorable. Instant Gamecock fan. Loves to take naps on his Gamecock blanket and has a bandana for game days. But my goodness, they are not lying when they say it is a lot of work, just adjusting. But it's been a long week and I am very, very ready for the weekend as it's much needed time. Gonna watch a ton of football root on our Gamecocks and yeah, oh, my goodness gracious. Hope y' all had a great week and are also ready for a good weekend out there. So we got a good bit of stuff to cover here, but of course we'll mainly focus on the Oklahom game preview. But a real quick week in review here. Have news in addition to scores here. So starting off with on Wednesday, the men's golf team finished fifth in the Bryson Invitational. Shout out to the men's golf team. But it was a busy week for our teams that are on the hardwood. Men's basketball had their media day this past week and it was pretty cool. You know, you saw Meeche Johnson once again, more like officially back in a Carolina jersey, talking about how it's surreal being back with the team. It's really cool to see him, Miles Studi hearing everything that he had to say and his gratitude for being able to A, be fully healthy and B, be able to take the floor once again with his team this year. And Lamont Paris having some really, really good things to say about this team. He said it's one of the deeper teams he's been around and it's the hardest working team that he has been around since his time at Carolina. So look, those are a couple of things that you can't change, right? Like you might not have the highest recruited guys on your team, but you can outwork people and you can come together as a team through that. And if you've paid any attention to the content that's come out from that team, it seems like they really are gelling pretty well. So that's exciting. You know, that's exciting and that's what you want to hear, right? You don't want to hear that. Hey, we're still working these new group of guys out, coming together, et cetera, et cetera, to hear that they are the hardest working team he's been around at Carolina, but, you know, in general, one of them, it's pretty impressive. So, yeah, shout out Q zip season, shout out men's basketball, and then notes from the women's basketball team here. They also had their media day this past week. It's always great to see them, great to hear their excitement. Anytime Don Staley is behind a microphone, I'm dialed in. Feels like she's always saying something either incredibly complimentary of the university or rather inspirational. So shout out to Don Staley. But on the opposite side of things from the women's basketball team. I'm a little neat. Little late to this news here, but, um, some pretty bad news out of the team in that Chloe Kits will miss this upcoming season. She injured her knee. I think it might have been an acl, but I don't want to, you know, don't quote me on that. But yeah. Has suffered a season ending knee injury. Rumors really started to swirl a week or two ago when she was spotted out in a big, big leg brace and she confirmed it on an Instagram post. And you just hate that.
[00:04:39] A player who has worked so hard at her time at South Carolina and has improved year over year and at times has been a very critical player for South Carolina and Dawn Staley. So wishing Khloe nothing but the best and a speedy recovery. Get well soon. But it's crazy. Before you know it, we're going to be talking about scores and real life basketball. It's nuts. We're going to. We're soon upon that time of year where you get college basketball and college football combined, but then you're going to have pro football playoff baseball, some basketball sprinkled in. It's going to be crazy hockey, if that's your thing. But. All right, shifting gears here to the football team, which of course is still very top of mind for better or worse for Gamecock Nation here. And I know I touched on it last week or last episode. Excuse me. But you know, I think the dust has settled a little bit from the Lonnie Teasley news. Obviously, I had to spliced the last episode together a little differently, but again, I think it was a tough decision for Shane Beamer, but probably the correct one. I'm not going to get into what I expect to see moving forward from the offensive line. I don't know if you can do a miracle turnaround in seven weeks. Right. You really need it to be more than that or less than that. Excuse me, but I do think what Sean Elliott is going to bring is a freshman perspective, which I think is what these guys need. I think some of what they were being told, while probably the correct things were, it just needed a new medium.
[00:06:18] And if you've seen any of the reports about how Sean Elliott has done this past week in practice, he is rolling up his sleeves and he is fixing this problem as best he can. They said he was lined up, lined up as a linebacker against the line, trying to get them to false start, like trying to distract them in any way he can in order for them to keep their cadence together. Said he was barking, blowing his whistle, clapping, calling dummy counsel, everything. So that's what you get from Sean Elliott. And Shane Beamer said that it's not that there's one right way of coaching and one wrong way. Coaching is teaching right. There's different schools to it. But I think you can look at the body of work from the last two years or so and say that maybe the style from Teasley, it just wasn't resonating with this current group. So if nothing else, Sean Elliott is going to bring energy, excitement and I think he's just going to tell these guys, just go freaking hit somebody. Just, just bully him. You know, like stop with this nonsense. You know, just hat on a hat football. Love to see it. But we will see if any of that happens this Saturday as the Gamecocks are taking on Oklahoma back at Willie B.
[00:07:33] Finally for a day game. First day game at home. That is 12:45 kickoff. I will be there. Very excited to see. Going with a buddy of mine.
[00:07:43] Always great to be back in Williams, Bryce.
[00:07:46] So excited. Had to make sure to get the seats on the shady side. If you know, you know, for this type of game. But it should be a wonderful day here. Five and a half points is the spread right now. Carolina sitting as underdogs.
[00:08:00] That's an interesting line. I mean, you're telling me that although it's a home underdog situation, that the top 15 Oklahoma Sooners are less than a touchdown favorites against the Gamecocks. That tells me a couple of things, right? I think this is going to be maybe a lower scoring game potentially, but we still don't know about Mattier. And maybe, just maybe the odds makers are seeing something that the Gamecocks do well that has caused Oklahoma fits despite the one loss. So something to keep an eye on there in terms of the injury report.
[00:08:39] Y' all know how this goes. I record and then there's like one or two even new injury reports. So take this with a grain of salt. This is the last one that I saw. It could very well be different when you listen to this.
[00:08:52] Doubtful. All offensive linemen Nolan Hay Shedserat and Casen Henry.
[00:09:00] Questionable offensive lineman Marquis Anderson. That is a great piece of information. Even if he doesn't play this year, to see him trending the right way is great. When he first went down, I thought he was done, done. And then also defensive lineman Gabe Brownlow. Dinley is questionable. That's a big one. Keep an eye on that. Hopefully he can play because he has been pretty good for us this year at a position in need. And then probable defensive back Brandon C. Say that's huge.
[00:09:30] But as far as this game is concerned, you know, we are now well into the gauntlet that was this stretch here between the buys and it's becoming high time that, you know, you got to make something happen here. You know, like we are talking now about just salvaging a pretty good season, right? Like, forget all the other crap at this point, right? Like, just get back to the basics of like, hey, all the football in the world is ahead of you.
[00:10:01] Play your best and find your way to a good finish here. The back half of the year since Shane Beamer has been here pretty much has been the better half of the year for Gamecock football.
[00:10:15] We'll see if that rings true. Okay, we're sitting in the middle of the season, the middle of October, and do you have it in you to make something happen here? Right? And that's really what it is. You're coming home now. You know, it was a tough road game. Really, really tough environment.
[00:10:31] You don't have to deal with this waiting around all day nonsense. Just wake up, get to the facility, hit your routine, and let's get it going. We have a new voice with Sean Elliott there. Maybe there's a couple of wrinkles that we incorporate with the run game that he likes to do. And I think there are some positives that you can take from this first half of the year. Right from those first six games. There's some positives that you can build upon, but the question is, can you really mitigate those deficiencies?
[00:11:07] Right. And it's going to be a tough challenge against Oklahoma, a team that has a big, big time bounce back year. But it's an opportunity, you know, and that's really all these Next, really, the rest of the games are. Is an opportunity, and I really do believe that if South Carolina can find an upset win in these next, now three games, I think it can set up well for the team, and it's really what you need when you talk about, you know, bowl eligibility and things like that. I. I hate putting the cart before the horse with a lot of this stuff at this point where we are, but it's what you have to do. And I think a lot of it is just going back to the basics, which I know is crazy to say, but, like, Lenores just needs to do what he does well, you know, like, he doesn't have to make this monster play every single time, you know, running the ball. Just do the little things, right? You know, offensively, like, if you're just tightening up the screws and cutting down on these penalties that got Lonnie Teasley fired, like, yeah, you're probably going to be in better shape than you have been the rest of the year, you know, but this game with that line being less than a touchdown tells you that it's going to be one of those X factor plays, you know, is that a special. A special teams play?
[00:12:34] Maybe. You know, I mean, Vicari and the special teams unit was the talk of the town for the first two weeks of the season.
[00:12:42] And while there's been some interesting moments from that group, there haven't been those. That wow factor yet. Maybe we see that, you know, we've seen a couple of attempted fakes, things like that, but maybe there is that big return or that, that fake that changes momentum or that blocked punt, something along those lines. Could swing that line, you know, could swing that game in favor of South Carolina. Defensively, you know, we are a defense that loves to get turnovers, and if you can end up on the right side of that turnover margin, that is how you come out on the right side of things, from being less than a touchdown underdog. So I think there's going to be opportunities in this game, but it's going to certainly be an incredible challenge. So what are the Gamecocks looking at in the LSU Tigers, ranked 14th in the country, coming off their first loss of the season to Texas. John Mattier, their quarterback, who came over with their new offensive coordinator, really leading this offensive resurgence, but seemingly not 100% healthy last week, obviously coming back from that broken thumb surgery, came back in miracle time to play in the Red river game and was off. You could just tell. Now the question is, was it his hand or was it. I hadn't played in a couple of weeks and I'm going against my rival. They're a good defense, yada, yada, yada. So that is a big, big storyline to keep in mind going into this one. And then defensively, they have been lights out. They have been ferocious. This is a classic Brent Venables defense. Shane Beamer said it pretty well where he's the head coach and he's calling the defense now. He can do whatever the hell he wants. You know, if he wants to send eight guys multiple times, he can do that because he's got nobody to answer to but himself. So what are my crows to the game here for the whole team? I want everyone to say this with me.
[00:14:47] Be the least penalized team. One more time, be the least penalized team. There we go.
[00:14:54] I'm not going to elaborate on that. That's a crow to the game for the whole team.
[00:15:00] Defensively, my first crow to the game here. No easy throwing lanes. Okay? Like I just said, Mattier was not himself against Texas. I think, I do think his hand not being 100% is true. I think there's no way you have thumb surgery and can play at a high level when it's on your throwing hand. Right. I think it. He. He's off. You know, when you have to be, you know, like when you get tackled, you're thinking about are you landing correctly. If you have to tuck and run, you're thinking about it. When you're throwing the ball, you're thinking about not hitting it on a player, player's helmet or whatever it may be.
[00:15:40] He says it was. He wasn't seeing the field. Well, you know, quarterback speak. Either way, this crow, let's not leave guys open to leave that for interpretation. Right. Let's stay in phase with the receivers and I'd love to see the defensive line bat some passes down here. If we do that two or more times, you can thank me.
[00:16:04] And then I would like to think that that's going to really behoove us. I'm just saying, two or more times. We haven't really seen that a lot this year.
[00:16:11] Second crow on defense. Continue to play good red zone defense.
[00:16:16] Defense has been really solid this year, but I think this has been a bright spot, in my opinion, for the defense. And for a game like this where you are home dogs, trying to keep a dangerous offense out of the end zone when they are close can make a difference and I think it would really take the wind out of their sails. You know, they are.
[00:16:35] They might be coming into this game thinking, all right, that was the Red river game last week, neutral field, weird game. Now Mattier's back, we're going on the road. It's 3 and 3 South Carolina.
[00:16:48] We can just get this thing back going again.
[00:16:51] And if they're on, you know, the 12 yard line and they can't get it nine yard line, they can't get that, that first and goal situation, that's going to demoralize them and they're going to say, wow, like maybe our offense is having some trouble here, so do that. Third Crow sound tackling. Oklahoma has some playmakers and while the tackling has been better since Mizzou, I think this reared its head at times against lsu. So be sound and make every yard hard earned.
[00:17:22] Offensively, my first Crow to the game, cut down on the pre snap penalties. I'm doubling down on that. Those have been absolutely murder for us.
[00:17:33] So let's see if Sean Elliott can work his magic in that area. Second Crow take advantage of the aggressive defense. Okay? Like, I would love to see the screen game in action. We saw that a few times against lsu. Continue doing that and just continue to work to get the ball out of Lenore's hands quickly.
[00:17:55] Third Crow weather the storm, okay, Oklahoma is going to get their tackles for loss, they're going to get some sacks. They're a really, really good defense. Top of the sec, right? But up until this point, getting a tackle for loss had just been a drive killer for the most part. So this offense needs to be able to weather the storm and move past that and fight through that and find a way to get a first down. If you're behind the chains, not by your, your own doing.
[00:18:28] Fourth Crow Lenoris has to be quick with his decision making. Can't hold on to the ball for too long against these guys. You just can't. You know, I think what you saw at times against lsu, he was, he wasn't trusting what he was seeing at times. And I think he was looking for the big play when he didn't necessarily have to.
[00:18:48] So trust that first read, maybe that second read. If it's not there, tuck the ball and get the hell out of there. Don't stand there for four or five seconds and think something's going to happen because you'll get sacked.
[00:19:01] So overall, for the game, look, it's a challenge. It's a challenge. And you know, the health of Mattier is a big, big question mark. And I do think that's partially why the line is less than a touchdown. I'm Sorry, I keep going back to that. But it was surprising to see and that tells me that at least the guys who do this for a living that handicap this stuff believe that we have a fighter's shot in this.
[00:19:24] You know, like when Vandy came to Willie B. That line was, I think, five and a half.
[00:19:32] So it's a challenge, but it's not something where you're on the road at night, that type of deal. You are home.
[00:19:40] You'll have the home crowd behind you. And if you can be close in this one at the half and give yourself a chance to make a couple of plays in the second half, you know, that's where I'd want to see it. You know, this game's not going to be won in the first or second quarter. Like, even if it's not looking good for us, it's a long game. And I do think that there's going to be some opportunities to make some plays there.
[00:20:03] But with that, let me give you all my six pack of picks and I will get y' all out of here. Really, really good slate of college football on Saturday.
[00:20:11] Ironically, it's a, you know, you're like, you gotta go to the game this weekend and all the other ones. But in the ACC give me Georgia Tech plus one and a half versus Duke. Big 12, Utah minus three and a half versus BYU in the Holy War. Big 10 give me Southern Cal plus nine and a half versus Notre Dame. SEC Mississippi State versus Florida over 51 and a half and a and M minus seven and a half versus Arkansas. And group of five going max in here. Northern Illinois versus Ohio over 41 and a half. But with that, y', all, that wraps up this episode. Please follow me on social media Twitter or X is Cox Gamecox. 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 Cox.
