The South Carolina football team is looking to snap a two-game losing streak coming off a 26-7 loss against the No. 13 Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium. They will face the No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide this weekend.
The Daily Gamecock spoke to The Crimson White Sports Editor Samuel Prestipino about the upcoming matchup. The game will kick off at 3:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN.
The Daily Gamecock: Alabama opened the season with a loss to Florida State but since then has been on a six-game win streak. How are you feeling about the season so far?
Prestipino: “I think it’s definitely been a roller coaster for sure. I think going into the Florida State game, a lot of people were super high on 'Bama. There were national championship expectations, and then you lose that game … Those expectations were definitely taken down a little bit, and rightfully so. And so I think that, with this winning streak, the team has really gotten its act together in a lot of different ways."
“Physicality has been there. The offensive play-calling has been a lot better. The run game is still taking a little bit to come along, but other receivers are getting involved. It was just (senior wide receiver) Germie Bernard doing his thing against Florida State, but he’s come along in a big way. The defense has really gotten its act together a lot more physically … Things currently right now are super positive within the program.”
Last year, (former Alabama quarterback Jalen) Milroe threw two interceptions against the Gamecocks, and (redshirt junior quarterback) Ty Simpson only has one so far (this season). What has made him so efficient in the passing game?
“I think that’s really just who he is as a quarterback. That’s just how he operates. He’s been in this system for a long time. He knows a lot of these receivers like the back of his hand. He’s been working super hard with these guys. And I think a lot of credit, too, can go to the new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, who had a lot of success with a quarterback of a similar archetype at Washington with Micheal Penix. I think that the marriage of quarterback and offensive coordinator has been a really good one.”
Who are some players on either side of the ball that you think can make an impact in Saturday’s game?
“I think the guy to look for with Alabama is a guy like (redshirt) junior (wide) receiver Isaiah Horton. All the attention is going to be on guys like Germie Bernard and (sophomore wide receiver) Ryan Williams, especially after the games they had against Tennessee. Those are the high-profile guys, but the Miami transfer in Isaiah Horton I think could definitely step up and have a big game ... He played really well against Missouri.”
“On the other side of the ball, I really am interested to see what (redshirt sophomore linebacker) Yhonzae Pierre does. Again, he burst onto the scene against Tennessee. Got a couple of sacks, kind of caused a safety and intentional grounding in the end zone. I think he could really be a game-wrecker on that defensive side of the ball."
What does Alabama have to do to win this game?
"For this game, I think the biggest thing is just not being complacent … It's been a situation where (head coach Kalen) DeBoer has maybe struggled in the past with this team, Vanderbilt after the Georgia game last year being a huge example (and) Oklahoma on the road last year when that team wasn’t very good. So I think this is a very similar situation against a South Carolina team where the vibes aren’t really good right now, but you welcome the No. 4 team in the country.”
“So I think for Alabama … doing its best to avoid turnovers is probably the biggest thing and getting off to a fast start and kind of trying to put this thing to bed early and don’t really let South Carolina hang around in the second half.”
Is there anything else you’d like to note about this game?
“I think something important to look at would just be to see how Alabama’s running game does. I think they struggled a little bit with running the football … They have very good running backs there. I just don’t know. I guess the offensive line isn’t putting it together. They’ve been shifting combinations around a lot back there just to kind of see what gels and what meshes. If they can run the ball effectively in this game, I think, for the betters out there, that spread is definitely getting covered by 'Bama, if they can figure out how to run the ball in this game.”
What’s your score prediction for the game?
“So we actually do a score prediction story every week, and mine hasn’t gone out this week, but I think it’s going to be in the ballpark of 34-20 … in favor of Alabama.”