Stone Blanton: Gamecocks 'destined for greatness'
In year two as a linebacker for the South Carolina Gamecocks, Stone Blanton feels that his team is on the verge of doing some big things.
USC head coach Shane Beamer took over a program in December 2020 that had won six games in the previous two seasons.
His team finished the 2022 regular season by knocking a pair of top ten teams out of the College Football Playoff.
“You just have to be able to buy into what Coach Beamer is saying. Everything he says is true. He knows a lot about football, he knows a lot about winning, and he knows a lot about how to change a program to believe that they can win,” Blanton said during a Tuesday appearance on the Garnet Trust Hour on 107.5 The Game. “When it comes down to it, you’ve got to have confidence. You can’t hesitate, you can’t think about anything negative.”
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Blanton left his home state of Mississippi to join the Gamecocks’ 2022 recruiting class because he felt at home in Columbia. He saw firsthand how Beamer kept the team together last season despite some struggles to finish strong.
Now, Blanton feels things are even more positive.
“This team’s culture has gotten so much better, even from the time that I got here,” he explained. “The culture now is phenomenal. When I was here last year it was good, it was just keeps building and building.”
A recent team meeting anecdote was passed along by Blanton to illustrate his point. As he told it, running back JuJu McDowell and off-field staffer Derrick Moore were asking the team what ‘the ceiling’ was for the 2023 Gamecocks team.
“JuJu blurted out, ‘there is no ceiling’,” said Blanton. “We’ve got a really selfless bunch and want to see each other do the best we can do and take it to the next level and win a championship.”
Blanton’s serious about that last point, too. He feels USC’s good enough to make a run. A teammate, Lovasea Carroll (medically retired earlier this year) believes the same.
“We have the talent to do it. (Carroll) was part of the Georgia national championship team and even he sees that we have what it takes to make it,” he said. “I think Coach Beamer does a great job just keeping guys positive. People want to be in the building, people want to play for him. Our guys are pretty happy with where they are and want to be a part of this team.”
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Blanton thinks that USC fans who are thrilled about last season’s end and looking forward to the future have every right to be pumped for the start of the 2023 season.
Said Blanton: “They should be really excited. This program is definitely doing something special. We all believe and have the same intent that we can take it all the way. A lot of people say that, but we actually believe it. This team is destined for greatness, I think.”
