South Carolina defense preps for Kyron Drones with star teammate

When the South Carolina defense takes the field Sunday afternoon at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, it’ll face its first quarterback challenge of the season in Virginia Tech’s Kyron Drones.

In fact, defensive coordinator Clayton White called Drones one of the toughest QBs they will face all season.

“Drones is probably one of the top quarterbacks right now that we’re facing,” White said Thursday. “If you just look across our schedule in regards to just experience and play-making ability, definitely.”

Luckily for the Gamecocks, they’ve faced a quarterback with a similar build and similar playstyle. They get to do so in practice every day with returning starter LaNorris Sellers.

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If you look at the tale of the tape, Drones is older than Sellers by two years. However, the quarterbacks are only separated by one inch and five pounds in stature. Sellers comes into the season at 6-foot-3, 240 pounds, while Drones stands at 6-foot-2, 235 pounds.

“Yes, I do feel like there are some similarities in their game,” White said. “Both have strong arms, do a great job of stepping up in the pocket and making people pay for mistakes and opening gaps and stuff like that.”

The plays Sellers makes in practice are also just like what South Carolina fans see on Saturdays, according to Luke Doty.

“He makes a lot of those plays every day in practice. So, when he makes them in the game, it’s kind of like, Oh, that’s just him,” Doty said Wednesday. “There’s been a bunch throughout camp; he had a couple today, that’s just who he is.”

Preparing for Drones and the Virginia Tech offense comes with having to be ready for anything, cornerback Brandon Cisse said. He agreed with White’s sentiment that having Sellers around helps.

“It’s huge. Both of those guys are very similar in some ways,” Cisse said. “It’s great to be able to have someone like that to go against in practice because this weekend we’re going to have our hands full with a guy like Kyron Drones. … We got to go out there and prepare for it, so it’s good to go against someone like that every day that pushes us every day to be better.”

Head coach Shane Beamer doesn’t think enough people are talking about Drones, who he also thinks is reminiscent of Sellers.

“He’s a heck of a talent, and he can make all the throws,” Beamer said. “… He’s a quarterback who’s able to run the ball, but he’s not shying away from contact. I mean, he has a play against Old Dominion last year where he breaks it off for 60 (yards), and he’s trying to run over people, and defenders are just bouncing off of him. So he makes their offense go, and it will be a big challenge for us on Sunday.

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