Everything Spencer Rattler said

Was the defense doing anything you didn’t expect? What were you seeing out there?
Rattler: That’s a really deep defense. They were pressuring every single play pretty much and they did a good job. Credit to them. They had a great scheme, great players, really good up front, good linebackers, good DBs. It caused a lot of problems for us. I’m just sad we couldn’t play at a higher level. I put most of that on myself. I’ve got to do a better job throughout the game trying to make stuff happen. But as a group, it was just tough for us to get things going. We had some momentum there towards the end, but we were just really bad on third down. To score one touchdown, and for them not to score one and we still lose, it’s crazy, but we just played a really bad game. 

How much is this place meant to you? And have you given any thought to what comes next for you?
Rattler: This place meant everything to me. Coming here, being here two years and just enjoying every moment, the adversity, the success. I wanted to be a part of change in this in this program. I feel like I put 110% effort into it every day, coming to the facility and leading like I know how, becoming a better person with Coach Beamer. Coach Dowell, Sean Ryan. All these people are just A-tier people, top-tier people. I love them. I love his team. I’m sad we couldn’t get a better record this year, but we could have easily not won five games just by throwing the towel in. We fought, and I love these dudes.

What happened with the backward pass to Xaview Legette and then the interception?
Rattler: The first one was just very unfortunate. We’ve been running that play throughout the year. It could be either forwards or backwards or right in the middle. It’s really where the ball ends up, so that was just an unfortunate play to start the game. Then the interception after that, just a bad throw. I should have threw it over his head. Trying to give Legette a chance, and the dudet made a good play on the ball. Other than that, we couldn’t get anything going. It was just a rough night. 

Did you think it was backward?
Rattler: I didn’t think it was backwards. I thought it was about, say, maybe a couple of inches forward, but they made the call.

What is your relationship with Shane Beamer like and how has it developed here?
Rattler: Not being around him too much at Oklahoma, I knew the type of person he was, his players loved him. And then coming here, I saw what he was doing. When I got in the portal, I knew that was a guy I wanted to play for. Never in a million years I thought I’d be in South Carolina. And it’s just funny how God works. Beamer was here, he wanted me to come here, and I believed what he was doing, and I still do. He’s the man for the job. He leads that locker room like nobody I’ve seen before and he’s got it headed in the right direction. I was just happy to be a part of playing under him and his team was awesome.

How much pressure did you feel to make the right throw with Clemson limiting the run game?
Rattler: They have a really good defense, one of the best in the country. We knew it was gonna be a four quarter game. We knew it wasn’t gonna be easy. They did a lot of good things, a lot of good pressures. We were pressured on a lot of plays and it was tough. They bring a lot of different stunts and pressures and coverages. It’s just tough to find a rhythm when they’re doing that. We were shooting ourselves in the foot a lot of the time and just couldn’t convert on third down. It was rough but we didn’t quit, and that has been the story of the year. We never throw the towel in and we fight until the last second.

When you look back in a few years what will you have learned from this game?
Rattler: I think as a quarterback, you’re gonna have years throughout your career of big win seasons, you’re gonna have, like this season, five wins. And a couple of wins we could have snuck out in the fourth quarter throughout the season, probably could have been sitting at eight, nine wins possibly. If you really look at it like that. But that’s just part of life. Nothing’s easy. You’ve got to work every day. And that’s something I’m proud of this team is they came to work every single day after win or loss. We showed up on Sunday, put the work in, and was excited to compete the next week. I’ve been on teams where it’s different. Proud of this team, love these guys, love these coaches, I’m just sad how it ended.

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Where do you think you’ve grown as a person or a player over the last two years? 
Rattler: I think just overall, becoming a better leader. Going through last year and being new, I wanted to show who I am and gain the trust of my teammates. I was very lucky to be voted a team captain last year, and this year as well. It’s an honor to be a captain at this university and I don’t take that lightly. I’m just happy I could gain the trust of my teammates and build so many close relationships that we’ll be close 10-20 years down the line. Just creating relationships, becoming a better player, I feel like under Coach Beamer and then when Dowell comes in, he’s taught me so much about the game, him and Sean Ryan. I just learned so much about the game. I felt like we had a good year offensively, obviously not good enough to win all these games, but better than it has been. Speaking on the QB room, it is the closest, coolest, realist QB room ever. I love those dudes. I enjoy going to work with them every day.

How do you want Gamecock Nation to remember you?
Rattler: As a dude that just gave his all. As a dude that helped change the program, helped lead us to a lot of big wins with the team. He’s a great leader, a great captain, just played hard every single Saturday and put it on the line, kept us on the game. I just want to be known as that. It’s a blessing to be mentioned with these guys that have played here before and I don’t take that lightly. Very happy to be part of this tradition and very happy I’ll be graduating from here December 18, so I’m an alumnus here, this is my home away from home so I’m always happy for that.

What will be your best memories of Columbia?
Rattler: I think just being around the guys. We’ve had a lot of big wins. Last year Tennessee, Clemson, Kentucky, A&M. This year Kentucky, having a clutch win last week against Kentucky. Even some of the losses, the battles we’ve had, I’m gonna remember everything. But mainly just being around the guys, being around the team, being in the quarterback room just joking for hours with each other, with D-Lo, and just having fun. These are the best times of our lives like we said. We were talking as seniors last night to the team, and times you’ll remember forever is this time right now. No matter what it was record-wise, we all enjoy every single moment here and it’s been awesome.”

What was it like to be embraced by Gamecock Nation?
Rattler: It was a blessing. I wanted to come somewhere where the fan base was very loyal, always had each other’s backs, had their buddies’ backs. I feel like this fan base is the best in the country. Every game sold out. Win or loss, they’re showing up, supporting the players. One of the best, if not the best, fan bases in the country. I just wanted to let them know through my play, through my leadership, I put it all on the line and enjoyed every moment here. I’ll never forget it.

What are your plans for the next six weeks or so?
Rattler: I’ll get into that you know when the time’s right. I’ll announce everything and let y’all know what’s up. I’m just really taking it day by day right now. I’m gonna kind of rest my body, take some time off, and then I’ll get back to it.

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