Why South Carolina didn’t turn to Luke Doty at QB during game against Florida
Well, that was something.
South Carolina was drubbed on Saturday 38-6 by Billy Napier’s Florida Gators and looked largely listless in the process.
The Gamecocks (6-4, 3-4 SEC) are already bowl-eligible, but the loss leaves USC looking for answers with games upcoming against No. 5 Tennessee and No. 10 Clemson.
Here are four things we learned this week:
South Carolina isn’t about to make a quarterback change
Spencer Rattler wasn’t perfect on Saturday, though that was far from the Gamecocks’ only issue at The Swamp.
Rattler finished the night 18 of 26 for 184 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. Yet, if fans think a quarterback change is coming — or even would change most of what’s been wrong with the South Carolina offense of late — that’s not likely to happen.
Backup quarterback Luke Doty has already played four games this year, meaning one more appearance and he wouldn’t be able to take a redshirt and preserve a year of eligibility. Beamer said as much postgame.
“Luke’s at a point right now where he’s played in four games, so I wasn’t going to put him in with three minutes left in the game and burn that fourth game,” he said. “I’m not saying we’re sitting here adamant about playing or redshirting Luke. But with three minutes in a game we weren’t going to win, I wasn’t going to put him in there.”
Dakereon Joyner was the only other Gamecock to take snaps at QB against Florida. Freshman Tanner Bailey also made the trip instead of Colten Gauthier, who was not on the travel roster.
Rattler hasn’t been out of this world this year, but he’s been good enough. This should be his show the rest of the way.
Gamecocks are a different team without MarShawn Lloyd
South Carolina mustered just 227 total yards of offense against a team that had surrendered at least 370 yards in every game but one this year. Why? Take a look at the running game.
The Gamecocks were without MarShawn Lloyd for the second-consecutive week due to a thigh contusion he suffered in the loss to Missouri — and his absence showed.
Tight end Jaheim Bell did his best to shoulder the load, but he was limited to only 30 yards on 12 attempts, good for 2.5 yards per carry.
Heading into the weekend, Lloyd ranked third in the Southeastern Conference in rushing touchdowns (9), and eighth in yards rushing per game (69.5). That’s a lot to replace for a player who has spent the bulk of his time at tight end and receiver.
Simply put, South Carolina needs their top running back in action.
South Carolina’s rush defense is a problem
South Carolina has struggled to stop the run in spurts. Saturday was a different animal entirely.
Florida has been at its best when quarterback Anthony Richardson is effective as a runner. In games the Gators won this season entering the weekend, their starting signal-caller averaged 9.61 yards per carry. That dropped to 4.51 yards per carry in losses.
Richardson finished Saturday with 96 yards on 15 carries, though that takes into account the 15 yards he lost on sacks.
The Gators finished the night with three rushers turning in at least 95 yards in Richardson and running backs Trevor Etienne and Montrell Johnson Jr. Had Richardson finished over 100 yards, it would’ve been the first time since 1984 Florida had three 100-yard rushers in a game and only the second time in program history.
South Carolina has now allowed at least 200 yards on the ground in four of its seven SEC games this year. Injuries all throughout the defense haven’t helped the cause, but the Gamecocks are going to have to find some kind of way to slow the run down the stretch in 2022.
The last few weeks of the season could be rough
South Carolina had a 35% chance of winning on Saturday, according to the Massey Ratings — analytics that calculate how likely a team is to win a given game.
The next two weeks against Tennessee and Clemson? That percent chance of victory drops to 29% and 27%, respectively.
Saturday’s contest was, at least on paper, one that felt like South Carolina should’ve been competitive in. Instead, the Gamecocks laid an egg, and now there’s a good chance they won’t win a game the rest of the regular season.
Beamer remains optimistic, as most coaches would. Yet for a team that couldn’t slow a Florida offense that’s been inconsistent this year, next week’s matchup against Tennessee feels all the more terrifying if you’re a USC fan.
This story was originally published November 13, 2022 at 6:50 AM with the headline "Why South Carolina didn’t turn to Luke Doty at QB during game against Florida."
