One big storyline for Dowell Loggains against Tennessee
Dowell Loggains knows there are certain things that help dictate games, and that changes every week for South Carolina.
This week, it starts and ends with what Loggains called a “really talented” Tennessee front and a Gamecocks offensive line still going through some growing pains.
[Big Game Special! Get 50% off of a GamecockCentral membership!]
“(It’s) as talented of any front we’ve played. Now you’re talking about playing on the road…You have to play the game within the game. That’s a storyline to this thing,” Loggains said. “You have to play clean football. They offer a huge challenge that way. It’s a storyline of the game, to be honest. They’re good up front and we’re continuing to get better.”
Tennessee has been one of the best pass rush teams through the first month of the season, posting a whopping 75 pressures on the season. That’s an average of 18.8 per game with a total of 17 sacks, 14 quarterback hits and 44 hurries according to PFF.
The Vols have two players with at least 10 pressures in EDGE players James Pearce (15) and Tyler Baron (13). Linebacker Aaron Beason has seven while three others have six: tackles Omarr Norman-Lott and Bryson Eason plus EDGE Roman Harrison.
It’s a front that can cause a lot of problems for a South Carolina line that’s still trying to settle in after four games.
[Win a custom wooden Gamecock flag]
South Carolina could very likely start two true freshmen on the line and on the road in front of almost 102,000 people at Neyland Stadium.
Tree Babalade is a surefire starter and Trovon Baugh is the likely starter at right guard of Jakai Moore (shoulder) can’t play. Regardless of who starts, it’s going to be a very tough test.
“This is going to be a challenge for our guys up front. It’s everyone. It’s the receiver getting to their correct depths,” Loggains said. The tight ends and running backs have to be good in protection, the offensive line being good in one-on-ones and Spencer throwing on time and in rhythm. It’s an 11-man deal, not just the offensive line.”
The good news is South Carolina has largely been efficient under pressure offensively, especially in the passing game.
In two SEC games, teams have pressured Spencer Rattler on 43.6 percent of his dropbacks. In those, he’s completing 47.8 percent of passes for 8.5 yards per attempt and two scores with one pick.
[Get breaking news from GamecockCentral]
Teams are blitzing him on 50 percent of his dropbacks in SEC play and Rattler is completing a stellar 69 percent of passes and averaging 12.2 yards per attempt with four touchdowns to no picks.
“I think they lead the SEC in sacks right now. They’re doing a good job up front. They have talented players all over the field. They’ll try and do a lot of stuff to slow us down,” Rattler said.
“But at the end of the day, like each week we have to not hurt ourselves. We can’t shoot ourselves in the foot. We have to execute our game plan, get through our reads, get our protections right and run the ball efficiently. Everything will take care of itself.”
It’ll be up to Loggains and the rest of the South Carolina offense to handle a problematic Tennessee front. If the Gamecocks can, then there’s a chance to win. If not, it could be a long day offensively.
[NEW! GamecockCentral Business Network]
“It’s really talented and We have mechanisms to help our players. You go back and watch this tape from last year, it comes down to one-on-one battles sometimes. That’s going to be a big emphasis,” Loggains said. “As coaches, there are ways to help sometimes and put guys in advantageous situations and do things in pass protection and do things that way.”
Discuss South Carolina football on The Insiders Forum!
The post One big storyline for Dowell Loggains against Tennessee appeared first on On3.
