South Carolina football: who will play quarterback against Georgia?
By Jacob Elsey
South Carolina football coaches have not named the starting QB for UGA game.
Transfer signal caller Collin Hill and freshman quarterback Luke Doty split time last weekend in a matchup with Missouri. Hill, who’s started the first eight games of the year, struggled for a third time in four weeks, completing just 6-of-10 passes for a total of 39 yards. The performance left much to be desired, and led the Gamecocks into a 17-0 deficit heading into the half.
Interim head coach Mike Bobo inserted Doty into the lineup after the intermission, and the rookie totaled 159 total yards (130 pass, 59 rush) over the final two quarters. He led the team in both passing and rushing, marching the Gamecocks down the field to their only two scoring drives of the evening.
With Doty outplaying Hill last time out, it would seem obvious that he’d get the nod versus the Bulldogs, but Mike Bobo isn’t showing his cards quite yet.
"“We know who are our starting quarterback’s going to be, but we’re not going to announce it to the public.”"
Will he go with experience or athleticism?
In eight games this season, Hill has thrown for 1,411 yards, six touchdowns and six interceptions on a 59.1% completion rate with 6.6 yards per attempt. He’s taken 22 sacks and has shown limited mobility outside the pocket.
He’s not played bad, necessarily, having not gotten much help from his wide receivers, but he’s struggled to avoid the rush and extend plays.
Doty, on the other hand, offers that ability to escape the pocket and turn negative plays into positive ones. With the Gamecocks likely down their top wideout Shi Smith, and opposing defenses stacking the box to stop running back Kevin Harris, Doty may offer the best chance for South Carolina to be successful on offense.
We may not know who will be under center until kickoff, though we have our suspicions. The Gamecocks welcome Georgia into Williams-Brice Stadium for a 7:30 PM kick, looking to extend their current winning streak over the Bulldogs to two.