COLOMBIA — South Carolina footballthe schedule was already difficult, and even if SATURDAY may have made the road ahead even more difficult, no problem is more serious than the Gamecocks inconsistent offense.
THE Game roosters (3-2, 1-2 SEC) then faced number 1. 17 LSU just after Tigers lost a heartbreaker to Southern Cal. On Saturday, South Carolina faced No. 11 Ole Miss just after the Rebels (5-1, 1-1) were upset by unranked Kentucky.
Now the Gamecocks face Alabama after then-No. No. 2-ranked Crimson Tide lost to unranked Vanderbilt.
It’s a strange pattern in which South Carolina plays teams fresh off an emotional loss, but perhaps in the future the Gamecocks will take a page from their opponents’ book and put back some emotion, fire and energy in their attack.
South Carolina football offense was lifeless against Ole Miss
After the opener, the Gamecocks had a disappointing running game and barely threw passes longer than 17 yards.
In the first half, South Carolina had just six pass attempts and was 2 of 8 on third down. The Gamecocks relied heavily on short runs and could not open the middle of the field or get around the outside effectively. The Rebels defense just swallowed up the running game.
Rocket Sanders, South Carolina’s top running back, who injured his ankle against Akron, returned Saturday but was underutilized or still injured. Sanders finished with eight rushing attempts to South Carolina’s 43.
LaNorris Sellers stalls too much on offense and his offensive line must protect
Quarterback LaNorris Sellers, playing for the first time since Week 3 after spraining his ankle, seemed undecided.
He’s been sacked 16 times this season, including six times by Ole Miss, so it’s hard to say what he can do with time on his hands. On Saturday, Sellers rushed and kept his head down, or simply looked like he didn’t know what to do next, stalling and going out of bounds, or just throwing to the sideline.
He proved he can produce in the final minute like against Kentucky when he escaped pressure and found Mazeo Bennett downfield for a 32-yard catch on third down. He proved he could assert himself, like in the first half against LSU, when he scored on the first drive, ran for a 75-yard touchdown and completed a 39-yard pass.
Ole Miss exposed Sellers’ inconsistencies and disrupted the flow between his receivers. Coach Shane Beamer said the game plan was to have a few passes downfield, but they seemed nonexistent.
MORE PROBLEMS VS OLE MISS: South Carolina football lacks discipline and more overreactions following loss to Ole Miss
South Carolina finally threw a few random short passes to move the chains. Bennett, Gage Larvadain and Jared Brown have been reliable receivers, and if the Gamecocks can’t hit down the field, Sellers needs to at least consistently find them for short passes on the run to gain productivity.
With the Crimson Tide next, then Oklahoma and Texas A&M, the offensive game plan can’t be conservative.
If the Gamecocks want to finally be the one to upset a ranked opponent, they need to start playing like they want to score and believe they can match any offensive energy in the conference.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Send him an email to [email protected] and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin
This article was originally published on Greenville News: How South Carolina football’s lifeless offense can provide a quick fix
