South Carolina Football: Report card vs. Clemson Tigers
By Kevin Miller
South Carolina Football vs. Clemson:
Grades for the defense
. South Carolina Gamecocks. DEFENSIVE LINE. B. Defensive line coach Travian Robertson has gotten much more out of his unit since the 3-3-5 has become the primary defense for the Gamecocks. Boogie Huntley, TJ Sanders, and Tyreek Johnson all had some nice flashes. There wasn’t enough push in the run game by the big fellas up front for Carolina, but with the team’s struggles elsewhere, the run defense hardly seemed like the biggest issue, despite Clemson going over the 200-yard mark on the day on the game’s final drive. Just 1 sack was recorded, but the Gamecocks got a fair amount of pressure on Cade Klubnik.
A-. Two South Carolina football transfers have stepped up in a big way this season at linebacker. Debo Williams and Bam Martin-Scott combined for 21 stops as both players continued their recent strong play. Stone Blanton had some nice moments, as well. All three of those ‘backers (and high-upside freshmen Pup Howard and Jaron Willis) are eligible to return next season for a unit that could be among the team’s most improved.. . South Carolina Gamecocks. LINEBACKERS
B+. The secondary had a pretty good night in Williams-Brice Stadium. Nick Emmanwori continued playing well both against the run and the pass (including an acrobatic interception in the end zone). The back end of the defense gave up just 100 yards to Cade Klubnik as O’Donnell Fortune and Marcellas Dial were pretty good in the game, but Fortune dropped an easy interception early in the game that led to a field goal for Clemson. Emmanwori and DQ Smith had good tackling games, as well. The defensive backfield got bailed out a few times by dropped passes and throws that were tipped at the line of scrimmage, but they still played well.. . South Carolina Gamecocks. SECONDARY
You can check out the official box score here.
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