Connor Mitch did not fulfill his destiny and beat the Kentucky Wildcats. In fact, things did not go to plan at all on Saturday night. No one would have thought Connor Mitch’s last play of the season would come while trying to recover a fumbled option pitch, well at least due to the result of an injury during the play. Connor Mitch suffered a separated shoulder in the first half and is likely out for the season.
“That usually takes a year,” Spurrier said.
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As a result, Steve Spurrier inserted Perry Orth into the quarterback position, which led to a Gamecock rally that fell short in the end. Mitch finished the game completing 4 of 7 passes for 43 yards and 1 rushing touchdown. Orth came in and seemed poised and comfortable running the offense, which is something that has been questioned by many fans about Mitch since his first start last week against North Carolina.
In the second half, Orth led the team to scores on their first four drives. Unfortunately he could only find the endzone once in those four drives, settling for field goals on the first three. Orth finished the game 13-20 for 179 yards, 1 touchdown, and an interception which sealed the fate of the Gamecocks late in the game.
On a day where heroics were honored, the Gamecocks Orth gave his best, which turned out to be not enough. Gamecock fans have had questions about who would man the quarterback position since Dylan Thompson finished his career. Those questions were not put to rest even after Connor Mitch was officially named the starting quarterback against North Carolina. The opportunity was always there for Perry Orth to step in and take over, so he made sure to be prepared.
“The best thing I do, I think, is the preparation,” said Orth following the game citing Connor Shaw and Dylan Thompson as his examples. Spurrier was pleased with Orth’s overall performance and even went ahead and named him the starter for next week’s away game against the Georgia Bulldogs. “I’m going to continue to prepare to try to help us win ballgames,” Orth said. “We just have to get through this (the loss). We need to continue the intensity into next week.”
Although Orth seems to be taking the loss in stride after his solid play, his performance has not eliminated the questioning from the fan base about who should be the starting quarterback. Many feel Lorenzo Nunez should be starting over the former walk-on. Regardless, it seems that Orth has learned to be ready for anything. We just hope that this week, the entire team is as prepared as Orth.