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The Gamecock defense has its work cut out as it heads into its matchup against the Kentucky Wildcats this Saturday. The Wildcats are suffering from a less-than-stellar offense that is carried solely by senior wide receiver Dicky Lyons, Jr. and sophomore quarterback Mike Hartline. The Gamecocks have a defense that is coming off hot from a win against Ole Miss, thanks to some work by junior safety Emanuel Cook and sophomore safety Chris Culliver and senior defensive tackle Nathan Pepper.
"They look pretty good," Cook said. "They've got Dicky Lyons, a pretty decent quarterback and a decent running game."
Kentucky's main offensive asset is Lyons, but the team has huge gaps of talent everywhere else on offense. Lyons did manage to score a touchdown last year against the Gamecocks in the fourth quarter, but it just wasn't enough to overcome the lead Carolina held throughout the game.
The Carolina defense is getting ready for another SEC team that will give them a challenge. This is an important game for Carolina, as they only hold one conference win over Kentucky. The Wildcats have already had their bye week, so with one less game under their belt, they average 28 points a game compared to Carolina's 23.
"The only person I think they do have is Dicky," Culliver said. "He's pretty decent. We just gotta play South Carolina football, no other way around it. Everybody's gonna be good that we face. We gotta come to the game ready to play. We just gotta be physically and mentally ready."
Kentucky is coming off a loss against Alabama's Crimson Tide, which was Hartline's first SEC road game. The Wildcats had plenty of opportunity to come back and beat Alabama, considering they had a strong defense. However, they have a tendency to drop passes, give out turnovers and fumble vital plays.
In the game against the Rebels, Culliver managed to make Dexter McCluster fumble at the Carolina six and had Cook to take that fumble back to the USC 42 to save Carolina from a sure scoring drive by the Rebels. Although Carolina fell out of the SEC's defensive lead last week, Cook's 14 tackles show that he is a player to watch out for and also a leader on the defense.
"Emanuel [Cook] is a hard worker, he's always in the box," Culliver said. "Tackling people, that's his deal. He does the tackling, I do the covering. [He's a leader on the team because of the] passion and how hard he works. The things he does on the field, he's just a different man on the field."
Freshman safety Akeem Auguste is a backup safety looking to follow in Cook's footsteps. Auguste had a major hit on Ole Miss wide receiver Lionel Breaux last week and two pass breakups.
"Everybody thought that [hit] was Cook's," Auguste said. "To hit like him, ah man. I learned from him. When we go out, we all see who can have the hardest hits."
Culliver, who is one of the many offense turned defense players, has also held his own in keeping the offense from getting very far. The potential for Culliver is immense, as he still stands as Carolina's only five-star recruit since 2003.
"I haven't caught as many [kick returns] as I'm used to, but that's my fault, there's no excuse for that," Culliver said. "I haven't gotten as many tackles as I'd like but free safety shouldn't have. I'm doing well, doing my responsibility.
Sophomore Nathan Pepper is coming off a good game also after he grabbed a fumble and returned it to Carolina to put them in the lead.
"Pepper looks good, he's been working hard," Culliver said. "Everybody's been working hard. If you don't work hard, coaches are gonna see that and your not gonna start."
Kentucky and Carolina both need this win, and with very comparable statistics, the defense will just have to make sure to hold off Hartline and Lyons. For more on Lyons, check out his segment on YouTube called the "Daily Dicky" put out by the Kentucky Athletics Department.
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