The Verdict: It isn't due to lack of effort
South Carolina football superfan and lawyer Chris Paschal writes a column for Gamecock Central called “The Verdict.”
The Verdict: It isn’t due to a lack of effort
I went back and watched the entire Georgia State game. Every offensive play I watched multiple times. As I was sitting in Williams-Brice Stadium, I caught myself thinking multiple times, “How in the world is this what the offense looks like in year two under Marcus Satterfield with all of these starters returning and the additions from the transfer portal?”
I have a rule that I shared with y’all last football season: I don’t tweet during games. But like many of you during the game, I was unimpressed with the offensive showing. Specifically, I was unimpressed with the blocking.
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In fear of losing the few readers I actually have, I am not going to talk about offensive line and line of scrimmage play. Of the 20 or so Verdicts I have written, I have probably talked about the lines of scrimmage in half of them.
Instead, I am going to talk about the thoughts many of you had inside Williams-Brice, or on your couch, or while having a post-game beer at your tailgate. Are the continuous blocking issues Carolina faces an effort issue? Do our guys just not give a rip about blocking?
Those thoughts are natural. We were playing a Sun Belt team. A dang good Sun Belt team, but a Sun Belt team, nonetheless. (You will find no bigger Sun Belt supporter than myself. I love their brand of football and their embrace of regional rivalries. But an SEC team should have their way with a Sun Belt team, especially on the lines of scrimmage.) How did our offense generate a mere 79 rushing yards?
Effort is a big part of football. Bear Bryant proselytized his players in August training camp that effort, not talent, would win games for Alabama. When Kansas plays Omaha in basketball on November 7th, the Jayhawk starters could half effort the first half and be up by double digits by halftime.
Almost every other sport in the world is so much different than football. You cannot just out-talent the other team in football. Georgia could be hosting Millsaps, and if Jalen Carter stood up and didn’t fire off the ball, that Millsaps double team would whip him every single time. There is no half effort in football. Half effort leads to embarrassment and injury.
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There were a lot of embarrassing moments for Carolina’s offense against Georgia State. And while stewing over the mistakes in Williams-Brice Stadium, I am sure I thought it was an effort issue. (See: no tweeting during the game.)
That being said, after re-watching this game, Saturday’s blocking issues were not an effort issue, but an over-thinking issue. I know exactly what an over-thinking issue looks like when it comes to blocking, because there were times I watched myself on film the following Sunday after Friday Night Football and thought “what are you doing man?”
Yes, high school football and SEC football are completely different worlds, games, and situations. But the look of “oh crap” is universal in football. And there were multiple times I saw offensive players – both linemen and skill positions – play slow, timid, and like they forgot what they were supposed to be doing.
When I watch at the 9:39 mark Eric Douglas whiff on a linebacker, Jaylen Nichols not get to his spot in time, and Vershon Lee get held up by a Georgia State defensive tackle, I don’t see guys not trying.
What I see are offensive linemen who lack confidence to make the blocks that need to be made. When I watch Josh Vann and Juju McDowell in the fourth quarter play paddy cake with Georgia State defenders who blow right by them and stop Jaheim Bell for a gain of nothing, I see two guys who weren’t mentally prepared to make those blocks.
That statement probably makes no sense to a lot of you. But knowing you will make the block and hoping you make the block are wildly different mindsets.
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Look to the defense for comparison.
How many times did you watch a Carolina defender fly around, smack the opponent, and make a great play on the ball? A dozen? Two dozen? Debo Williams and Brad Johnson? Tackles I haven’t seen a linebacker make for Carolina in years. Kajuan Banks and Nick Emmanwori? Two freshman defensive backs that played fast and free. Gilber Edmond!?! The second-coming of Jadeveon Clowney. Ok, too far, I know, but reserve Gilber Edmond played like a man possessed in the second half.
So, what was the difference? Well, as I previously mentioned, I find it hard to believe that the defensive players give more effort than the offensive players. So, it must be confidence. Our offensive players are not confident in who to block and/or how to block. I’m not a coach. I am not in the locker room. I have no idea if our players can’t grasp the concepts. I have no idea if Satterfield’s scheme is too complex.
Somehow, someway, Carolina’s offense needs to play much faster this Saturday against Arkansas. You must want to block somebody, but you also must be confident that you will block somebody. I saw too many Carolina offensive players standing around after the whistle was blown blocking air.
After a full year in this system and a full spring and fall camp with the same offensive coordinator, there is a disconnect. It surely is not an insurmountable disconnect, but Carolina cannot wait until November to fix these issues.
November and December of 2021 were supposed to be a springboard into the Fall of 2022. That was not the case in week one. As for me, I’m going to chalk it up to first game jitters.
Marshawn Lloyd and Spencer Rattler took to twitter to defend their offensive line teammates. And while the offensive line played a subpar game, it was the skill position players who were just as guilty of blocking nobody on certain plays.
I am going to believe the players who said the issues will be addressed. I am going to believe Beamer who said the most improvement comes from week one to week two. These offensive issues need to be fixed. We must block Razorbacks and not air this weekend in Fayetteville.
We got away with it against Georgia State. We will not get away with it against Arkansas.
