South Carolina vs. Arkansas: Key Players
There’s no question in anyone’s mind that if South Carolina wants to defeat a Top 25 SEC opponent on the road, the Gamecocks are going to need a few players to elevate their play in order to give them a chance to walk out of Fayetteville with a victory.
Spencer Rattler
This pick is an obvious one, one that some would say is too easy, but if South Carolina is going to take advantage of a battered Razorback secondary while also neutralizing their physical defensive front, Rattler will need to show up and show out.
His pre-snap reads will be just as vital as what happens in the middle of plays, as communication will be vital against a Razorback defense who wants to be able to pin their ears back and cause chaos in the box. Rattler also has the arm talent to where if the Hogs secondary gets beat in multiple one-on-one situations, like they did last week, Rattler must make them pay for it.
Josh Vann
One player who hasn’t been brought up enough in the past week is Josh Vann, who only caught 1 pass for 9 yards last Saturday against the Georgia State Panthers, and was a non-factor for the most part.
While it’s unclear as to why Josh Vann had such little production in Week 1, this statline cannot be repeated this week in a game which will have a much greater impact on the Gamecocks season. Vann in some people’s eyes is unequivocally WR1 for this Gamecock offense, and if the Gamecocks want to win this game against Arkansas, they’ll need the 2021 version of Josh Vann to quickly reemerge.
Mohamed Kaba
Playing the MLB spot for this Gamecock defense, Kaba’s role in trying to slow down this Arkansas offense will be infinitely important. The Razorbacks like to run the ball and set up the rest of their offense off their rushing attack, so Kaba being at the second level of the defense will need to make sure he makes the correct reads, follows his assignments and ensure the defensive front is lined up correctly.
Kaba is also a solid athlete in his own right who can run well sideline-to-sideline, which against a dual-threat QB like KJ Jefferson could mean the difference between a play that goes nowhere or a QB scramble that extends a Razorback drive. While these factors sound minuscule, they add up over the course of a game against an offense like Arkansas’, so Kaba’s play could be the difference between a competitive slugfest or a long outing for this Gamecock defense.
How to watch South Carolina @ Arkansas
● Gameday: September 10th, 2022
● Game Time: 12 pm EDT
● TV: ESPN
● Location: D.W.R Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas
● Live stream on fuboTV: Start with a 7-day free trial!
How to Listen to the Game
You can listen to the game through the Gamecocks Radio Network with Todd Ellis on the call!
Join the community:
Follow Evan Crowell on Twitter: @EvanVCrowell
Follow Brooks Austin on Twitter: @BrooksAustinSI
Follow Andrew Lyon on Twitter: @ALyon_SC
You can follow us for future coverage by clicking "Follow" on the top right-hand corner of the page.