Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
We inform. You decide.
Thursday, March 28, 2024

Gators look to steady ship against scuffling South Carolina

Florida travels to Columbia for its first win in nearly a month Saturday

Gators running back Malik Davis (pictured with ball) takes a handoff from quarterback Anthony Richardson during Florida's Oct. 30 game against Georgia.
Gators running back Malik Davis (pictured with ball) takes a handoff from quarterback Anthony Richardson during Florida's Oct. 30 game against Georgia.

The last time Florida head coach Dan Mullen and his team made the journey to Columbia, South Carolina, the Gators stood mighty at 6-1 for the season, their only blemish to eventual national champion Louisiana State. The Associated Press tabbed the Gators No. 9 in the country, and they left with a 38-27 victory.

Two years later, UF has not entered AP voters’ minds in a few weeks. Florida sits merely 4-4, with losses in three of its past four games and each of its two Southeastern Conference road trips thus far in 2021. 

The Gators look to remedy recent history and take down a floundering Gamecocks squad this Saturday at 7:30 pm in Columbia.

One thing assuredly won’t be pleasant Saturday night — the weather. The Weather Channel website, as of Friday night, pegged game day with a high temperature of 54 degrees, a 47% chance of rain and winds of 13 miles per hour. A typical SEC Saturday.

Mother Nature’s misbehavior might play into Florida’s strengths, specifically its rushing attack. The Gators average 242.6 rushing yards per game, sixth-best in the country, at 6.1 yards per attempt. They have yet to amass less than 138 rushing yards in any game, and five different Florida runners surpassed 260 yards on the ground so far this season. 

The two quarterbacks excelled with their legs as well, as redshirt junior Emory Jones sits 10th in the conference in rushing yards (516) and redshirt freshman Anthony Richardson averages 9.4 yards per carry and scored a pair of rushing touchdowns longer than 70 yards. Richardson left Florida’s last game against Georgia in the second half with an injury, and his status for this weekend remains uncertain.

If Florida elects to rely on its ground game, it could remedy the turnovers plaguing the offense so far this season, specifically through the air. Jones and Richardson have thrown 14 interceptions through eight games, three more than any other team in the SEC, and both quarterbacks have tossed multiple picks in at least two games.

The Gamecocks offer themselves as the perfect benefactors to capitalize upon Florida's aerial errors. South Carolina intercepted 11 passes through its first eight games, tied for the most in the conference, and six different Gamecocks have hauled in interceptions so far this season. Redshirt senior defensive back Jaylen Foster has snagged five passes this year to pace the SEC, and he brought down a pair of interceptions off No. 1 Georgia last month.

Outside of their turnover handiwork, however, South Carolina has struggled mightily this season. The Gamecocks are 4-4 and 1-4 in the SEC with a trio of three-possession losses, and their only victory came by a single point over Vanderbilt. 

Under first-year head coach Shane Beamer, the Gamecocks average 20.88 points per game, but that total is heavily inflated by their opening 46-0 victory over Eastern Illinois. Without that performance, the offense only mustered 17.29 points per game. They’re 11th in the SEC in both passing and rushing yards per game, they manage 3.4 yards per rush, and they committed 494 yards worth of penalties (61.75 per game).

The South Carolina offense will operate with a new leader at the helm Saturday, as on3 Sports’ Matt Zenitz reported that the Gamecocks will start redshirt senior Jason Brown at quarterback after multiple injuries at the position. Brown will be Beamer’s third different starting quarterback of the season, and he’s completed 12 of his 20 passes for 129 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions so far in 2021.

Florida football begins its quest for its first victory in three weeks Saturday at 7:30 pm from Williams-Brice Stadium.

Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox

Contact Ryan Haley at rhaley@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter @ryan_dhaley.

Support your local paper
Donate Today
The Independent Florida Alligator has been independent of the university since 1971, your donation today could help #SaveStudentNewsrooms. Please consider giving today.

Ryan Haley

Ryan Haley, a UF journalism senior with a sports & media specialization from Jacksonville, Florida, is Summer 2022's Engagement Managing Editor. He grew up playing a bunch of different sports before settling on golf, following Rory McIlroy and all Philadelphia sports teams. He also loves all things fiction, reading, watching shows and movies and talking about whatever current story or character is in his head.

DM Ryan on Twitter or shoot him an email.


Powered by SNworks Solutions by The State News
All Content © 2024 The Independent Florida Alligator and Campus Communications, Inc.