Spurrier sounds off on Arch Manning

[Gamecock Jacque]

People are mentioning the "spys" on defense but there were plays where his instinct to avoid the rush kicked in and he started to take off and you can see him tell himself no and he would stop.

 

[Lurker123]

People are mentioning the "spys" on defense but there were plays where his instinct to avoid the rush kicked in and he started to take off and you can see him tell himself no and he would stop.

Yeah.

Maybe it was avoiding the risk of injury in a "meaningless gless" bowl game. Maybe it was a concerred effort to practice his throwing game over the running? Again, using a "meaningless" bowl game as a live fore practice?

Either way I saw it too. And i really hope when the season starts, our offense will utilize his strengths.

 

[Piscis]

I acknowledged before the season even started that our passing game and Sellers as a passer would be a work in progress. You are throwing a raw QB out there with no experienced receivers. My point has always been with detractors is what were you expecting. I thought he and the passing game had a surprisingly good season. Once Sellers got his fumbling issue under control, he protected the ball. 7 Ints. for a Freshman QB with young receivers. I will take take that. Almost 200 yds. per game. I will take that. Even in the Illinois game, Sellers was 24 for 34 for 260 yds, 1 TD, no turnovers. I went back and just finished watching that game due to this thread. I would give Sellers a C+ for that game and the type of game that he needs for his progression. As you said, everyone will watch tape of that game and try to find a way to stop the running game. One narrative I think that is incorrect though is that Sellers was just running all over the place. He had 674 yds rushing. Solid season running the ball, but he wasn't running around every play. He didn't have almost 250 Rushing Attempts, and over 1400 yds like the Cam Newton Heisman Year. I think the coaching staff, for the most part, did a good job with Sellers. I think they could have helped him some more with more drags across the middle in the Illinois game. The Illini's linebackers were just sitting there waiting for the run. Give him some crossers in the linebackers face to give them something to think about. That and the Illini's delay of game strategy is what I mean by saying we were out-schemed.

About half of his rushing yards on the season came in 3 games, LSU, aTm and Clemson, so, no he wasn't running all the time. A lot of his rushing yds were the result of broken pass plays not designed runs so there isn't much comparison with $cam.

I thought he had a better than average season as a new qb but nothing that warrants the intense fawning over his being some sort of "generational talent". This season will show a lot about how good he really is.

 

[gamecock stock]

A lot of his rushing yds were the result of broken pass plays not designed runs.

I thought he had a better than average season as a new qb but nothing that warrants the intense fawning over his being some sort of "generational talent". This season will show a lot about how good he really is.

True.

The fact is that a lot of his runs were out of necessity.

Before we all go starry-eyed regarding the upcoming season, let's not lose sight of 3 facts:
1. We finished last season 120th out of 133 teams in sacks allowed;
2. We finished last season 124th out of 133 teams in tackles for loss allowed; and
3. We have the same OL coach we had last season.

 

[18IsTheMan]

3. We have the same OL coach we had last season.

Inexplicably. And the same coach as 2023 when we were 126th in sacks allowed.

 

[Piscis]

True.

The fact is that a lot of his runs were out of necessity.

Before we all go starry-eyed regarding the upcoming season, let's not lose sight of 3 facts:
1. We finished last season 120th out of 133 teams in sacks allowed;
2. We finished last season 124th out of 133 teams in tackles for loss allowed; and
3. We have the same OL coach we had last season.

I seem to recall lots of talk around here in 2023 about how our incoming OL recruits were going make our OL dominant in 2024. I guess moving up from 126th to 120th constitutes improvement.

 

[AngloCock]

I seem to recall lots of talk around here in 2023 about how our incoming OL recruits were going make our OL dominant in 2024. I guess moving up from 126th to 120th constitutes improvement.

Sad state of affairs. We finally got the beef, but no one to cook the stew.

 

[Piscis]

Sad state of affairs. We finally got the beef, but no one to cook the stew.

I think it's more a case of garnet colored glasses when it came to recruiting. Everyone was all in on how great the OL recruits were and were fully convinced they were going to be great. The reality is, OL is one of the hardest positions to transition to from HS to college. In HS, most highly touted OL are simply athletic physical giants that can overpower HS defensive linemen with pure physical strength and size. Very few HS OL face even three star defensive players more than a handful of times in their HS career. When those HS OL arrive in college, they face defenders who are their equals or at least comparable physically and are quicker and faster than many of the DBs they saw in HS. Most OL need at least two and generally three years of development in college to become even "adequate".

The top programs in college football stack their OL roster two and three deep with four star recruits because they know the majority aren't going to become dominant in college. Carolina signs three or four four star OL and the fans are convince that will translate to instant OL success. When it doesn't happen, the first reaction is to call for firing the OL coach.

 

[Cobie]

True.

The fact is that a lot of his runs were out of necessity.

Before we all go starry-eyed regarding the upcoming season, let's not lose sight of 3 facts:
1. We finished last season 120th out of 133 teams in sacks allowed;
2. We finished last season 124th out of 133 teams in tackles for loss allowed; and
3. We have the same OL coach we had last season.

Gamecock football has historically had weak OLs due to limitations in recruiting power.

The focus is typically centered around skilled players to put heads in the beds.

With that said, we were in the Top 5/10 in offensive producion the 2nd half of last season.

Credit the staff.

 

[Go Gamecocks]

I thought he had a better than average season as a new qb but nothing that warrants the intense fawning over his being some sort of "generational talent". This season will show a lot about how good he really is.

Passing, clearly not. His playmaking is special. The dude is fast, quite agile and big time elusive.
It would seem the "fawning" is more for what he could be.

Like you stated, "this season".

 

[Go Gamecocks]

The fact is that a lot of his runs were out of necessity.

But the stats don't show Sellers' elusiveness. It can be a gamechanger if the game is on the line.

 

[Piscis]

Passing, clearly not. His playmaking is special. The dude is fast, quite agile and big time elusive.
It would seem the "fawning" is more for what he could be.

Like you stated, "this season".

He is definitely athletic but his passing needs work and, as I've said before, DCs will be well aware of his running/scrambling ability this season. Illinois put a spy, sometimes two, on him and pretty well shut down his miracle making runs.