South Carolina football: Gamecocks must rely on reserves in key roles

DL

The Gamecocks began the season with a starting front four of senior Aaron Sterling, senior Keir Thomas, senior Jabari Ellis, and junior JJ Enagbare. By season’s end, that front looked much different with the Gamecocks having to start three freshmen and sophomore.

South Carolina will likely rely on Jordan Burch, Tonka Hemingway, Rod Fitten, MJ Webb, and Joseph Anderson for extended snaps.

LB

Ernest Jones has been a stalwart in the middle of the South Carolina defense, leading the team in tackles each of the last two seasons. He’s now preparing for the NFL, meaning freshman Mohamed Kaba will need to step in. The rookie tallied 12 takedowns over the season’s final three games.

DB

South Carolina saw RJ Roderick, Israel Mukuamu, and Jaycee Horn opt out following Will Muschamp’s firing. Mukuamu had pretty much been unavailable since the LSU game, suffering a nagging groin injury. They’ve also recently learned that safety Shilo Sanders intends to transfer this offseason, meaning he’s likely unavailable, too.

In their place, the Gamecocks have relied on youngsters Cam Smith and John Dixon to man the cornerback position, while Jammie Robinson and Jaylan Foster man the back end.

Though young, this group has been productive. Robinson and Foster rank among the team’s top four tacklers, while Smith and Dixon have combined for seven pass breakups and a couple of picks. They’ll be expected to keep up the solid play in the Gamecocks’ season ending contest.